Archive | Security

Coalition Airstrikes Continue Against ISIL in Syria, Iraq

U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported on Sunday. Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports. Strikes in Syria Attack, ground-attack, fighter, bomber […]

Rare Attack Hits Yusifiyah

By Simon Kent. An improvised explosive device has killed at least 9 people and injured many more in the town of Yusifiyah, about 20km south of Baghdad. The town used to be part of what was once called the "triangle of death" along with nearby Mahmudiyah and Iskandariyah, and was once the scene of almost […]

Row Over Paramilitary Salaries

By Simon Kent. Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi faces new political pressure over the payment of salaries for the 100,000 strong Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) or Hashd al-Shaabi, as they are known in Iraq. The Hashd al-Shaabi were formed last summer after a call from the holy figure Grand Ayatollah Ali al Sistani, to defend […]

Kurds Discover ISIS Tunnel Complex

By Simon Kent. Kurdish Peshmerga forces in newly liberated Sinjar, the Yazidi majority town en route to Mosul, have discovered an ISIS tunnel complex of fighting positions. The Wall Street Journal has documented the find in a photo essay report. Tunnel complexes have previously been used by ISIS in the battle of Jurf al Sakhar last year, […]

Canada Changes Iraq Mission

By Simon Kent. Recently elected Canadian PM Justin Trudeau has announced a plan to increase the number of training personnel working with Kurdish Peshmerga in Northern Iraq. The number of Canadian advisers and trainers currently stands at 69. The announcement comes after Trudeau pledged to end Canadian air support to Iraqi forces fighting the so […]

UK Hits IS in Multiple Air Strikes

By Simon Kent. Following on from France's recent escalation of bombing against the so called "Islamic State" in Syria, the UK appears to have followed suit with a similar escalation in Iraq. According to a UK Ministry of Defence briefing reported in The Huffington Post, British jets from the Royal Air Force killed at least 30 militants […]

Mass Grave Discovered in Sinjar

By Simon Kent. Kurdish and Yezidi forces made the grim discovery of a mass grave over the weekend, containing the remains of up to 70 women near the town of Sinjar. Sinjar, a key town on the approach to ISIS occupied Mosul, is home to many of the Yazidi community and was recently recaptured in a […]

Iraqi Forces Advance into Ramadi

By Simon Kent. Iraqi army forces, supported by pro-government Sunni tribes and US air strikes, have advanced into central Ramadi according to officials quoted in UPI. The reported capture of the train station in the centre of the town  would mark the culmination of a series of "shaping operations" to cut off ISIS from their […]

Strikes Target ISIL Terrorists in Syria, Iraq

U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported on Thursday. Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports. Strikes in Syria Fighter, attack, and […]

Military Strikes Target ISIL Terrorists in Syria, Iraq

U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported on Tuesday. Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports. Strikes in Syria Bomber, fighter, attack, […]

New Resilience Agenda gives Options to IDPs

UNDP's New Resilience Agenda will help to give options to displaced Iraqis and refugees A new Resilience Agenda has been adopted at the high level Resilience Development Forum on 8 and 9 November in Dead Sea, Jordan attended by delegations from Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Turkey and Syria. The pathbreaking Resilience Agenda presents five key […]