Tag Archives | IS

ISIS Recruiter of Child Soldiers Shot Dead in Mosul

By Simon Kent. Unconfirmed reports suggest a Saudi Arabian national under the nom de guerre "Abu Wathbah al-Saudi," has been shot dead in Mosul, the last urban stronghold of the self declared Islamic State. The terrorist's role was apparently the recruitment of child soldiers. If true, it would only be one in a string of […]

At Qayyarah, Iraqi Troops Just 30 Miles from Mosul

By Simon Kent. Battling through an apocalyptic landscape of black smoke from burning oil, (fighters from the self declared Islamic State hoped this would hinder air strikes) Iraqi soldiers have reached the center of Qayyarah. Snipers held up the advance, before soldiers were able to capture a government compound. Qayyarah is just 60 km south […]

British EOD Technician Dies During Bomb Disposal

By Simon Kent.  An unnamed British Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) technician has been killed while trying to defuse an improvised explosive device (IED) in Ramadi, the mayor of the town has announced. The contractor was employed by US contracting firm Janus. Although cleared of fighters of the self declared Islamic State, Ramadi has been left […]

Police Find Mass Grave Near Mosul

By Simon Kent. Iraqi Security Forces have found a mass grave containing the remains of police from Ninevah province, in a village south of Mosul, the last urban stronghold of the self declared Islamic State. A Sunni Iraqi police Colonel from nearby Salahaddin, Ahmed al Jubouri, remarked on the discovery, “Security forces at the recently  liberated al-Jawaana […]

Germany Resumes Weapons Exports to Kurds

By Simon Kent. Germany have resumed arms shipments to the Kurdish Peshmerga after they were suspended following allegations that some of the arms had been seen on the black market. The latest shipment comes after the Kurdish Regional Government completed an investigation into the allegations and pledged that it would not happen again. Germany has […]

Seven Coalition Air Strikes Hit IS in Iraq

By Simon Kent. Aircraft from the international Coalition against the self declared Islamic State have struck seven targets in Iraq, according to officials from Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve. This is half the number of strikes that occurred in Syria over a roughly 24 hour period, suggesting a paucity of targets in Iraq […]

Minority Shabaks fear for Future

By Saad Salloum for Al Monitor. Any opinions here are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.  The Shabak community is one of the ethnic minorities in Iraq, speaking a language distinct from Arabic and Kurdish. Its members live on the Ninevah plains with other religious minorities […]

Humanitarian Crisis Warning for Mosul Offensive

By Simon Kent. Amnesty International, the world-wide human rights organization, has published a report warning of imminent humanitarian crisis as the offensive to liberate Mosul from the self declared Islamic State gathers momentum. The organization also warned the current humanitarian emergency, which has seen at least 3 million Iraqis displaced from their homes, is severely […]

Peshmerga Capture Villages Near Mosul

By Simon Kent. Kurdish Peshmerga forces have captured several villages from the self declared Islamic State, near the city of Mosul, the group's last urban stronghold in Iraq. Around 5000 Kurdish fighters participated in the operation, which was backed by Coalition air strikes. IS responded by launching suicide vehicle attacks, but these were not successful. […]

ISIS Struggling After Massive Casualties

By Simon Kent.  Outgoing US commander Lieutenant General Sean MacFarland has given a press conference on the state of the self declared Islamic State and the coming campaign to retake Mosul from group. At the conference, he noted that "the enemy is in retreat on all fronts.” The General noted that 30,000 airstrikes had hit […]

Jordanian Truckers Lament Trebil Closure

By Simon Kent. Last Summer, the Jordanian government closed the Trebil border crossing with Iraq as fighters from the so called "Islamic State," also known as Daesh, took control of huge areas of Anbar in Iraq. Jordan's Ministry of Transport subsequently forbade truckers to transit into Iraq, causing over 300 million Jordanian Dinars worth of […]

Kata'ib Hezbollah Threaten "Turkish Interests"

By Simon Kent. Iraqi Shi'a paramilitary group Kata'ib Hezbollah, or "Hezbollah Brigades" have threatened Turkish troops and Turkish interests in Iraq over the recent deployment of the Turkish army in Kurdish areas. Due to the location of Turkish troops however, the militant group is currently unable to target the Turkish army. Last week it was […]