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Iraqi Forces Conduct First Overnight Operation against ISIS | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Members of the Iraqi forces drive a BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicle as they hold a position in the village of Jarif, some 45 kilometers south of Mosul, on November 12, 2016, after retaking it from Daesh. (AFP/File)


Iraqi Forces Conduct First Overnight Operation against ISIS

by | Jan 7, 2017 | Middle East |

Iraqi Forces Conduct First Overnight Operation against ISIS

Baghdad, Mosul – A spokesman for Iraq’s elite Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) said counter- terrorism forces took the lead against ISIS militants in east Mosul in the first overnight assault.

Official Spokesman for the anti-terrorism department Sabah Naaman said that Iraqi forces progressed, overnight, and kicked out ISIS militants. Simultaneously, the U.S.-led coalition carried out 19 airstrikes to support the campaign.

Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi said that Iraqi forces liberated two thirds of Nineveh from ISIS. “The Iraqi Army has gained high combat experience from the war against terrorism…Our Iraqi forces will cut the head of the snake and clear off Mosul in a short time,” he added.

In Anbar, Iraqi forces seized a number of villages that were previously under the control of ISIS. Major General of Anbar Liberation Operation Qasem al-Mohammadi said, “Military units liberated seven villages from ISIS.”

Anbar province includes a wide desert space alongside Syria, Jordan and Saudi Arabia – security is still unstable despite liberating the majority of regions there.

In a related matter, Iraqi forces defied an ISIS assault in east of Al-Daur District (160km north Baghdad). A security source revealed that the counter attack conducted by helicopters aimed at kicking out ISIS militants from the village of Abu Dalf or eradicating them as well as seizing the village.”

“Operations led to the death off eight soldiers and the injury of 12 soldiers, while six ISIS militants were killed,” added the source. Furthermore, Iraqi forces entered the city on Friday from the north for the first time.