MESOP “OFFICIAL STATEMENT” : Iraq Feature: Prime Minister Announces Start of Battle for Mosul

17 Oct 2016 – Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has announced the start of the long-awaited offensive against the Islamic State in the city of Mosul, its central position in Iraq. Al-Abadi said on State TV early Monday morning:     We have been battling ISIS for more than two years. We started fighting Isis in the outskirts of Baghdad, and thank God we are now fighting them in the outskirts of Mosul, and God willing the decisive battle will be soon.

These forces that are liberating you today, they have one goal in Mosul which is to get rid of Daesh and to secure your dignity. They are there for your sake.About 30,000 troops — Iraqi forces, Kurdish peshmerga, and Shia militia — are attacking Mosul from three sides. A US-led coalition is supporting the assault with airstrikes and special forces, including US, British, and French soldiers.The attacks began on Sunday with long-range artillery and bombing, including a strike on a bridge, with the Kurdish frontline to the northeast about 11 miles from the city. Thousands of four-page leaflets were dropped on Mosul, telling civilians to avoid certain parts of the city and declaring it was “victory time”.The Islamic State has lit oil fires, creating a dense haze to try and block airstrikes.An estimated 6,000 ISIS fighters are in Mosul, which had more than 2 million residents before the Islamic State’s lightning takeover in June 2014. Observers say about 600,000 civilians remain.The Red Cross has warned that the offensive could result in a humanitarian crisis, with up to a million refugees fleeing areas in and near the city.“I am extremely concerned for the safety of up to 1.5 million people living in Mosul who may be impacted by military operations to retake the city from ISIS,” said Stephen O’Brien, the UN’s head for humanitarian operations, on Sunday.

But US Defense Secretary Ash Carter hailed the campaign:  This is a decisive moment in the campaign to deliver ISIL a lasting defeat.

The United States and the rest of the international coalition stand ready to support Iraqi security forces, Peshmerga fighters and the people of Iraq in the difficult fight ahead. We are confident our Iraqi partners will prevail against our common enemy and free Mosul and the rest of Iraq from ISIL’s hatred and brutality.The Islamic State suddenly captured Mosul — and other cities such as Tikrit — in June 2014. While ISIS had taken control of Iraqi territory since early in the year, notably in Anbar Province in the west, the crumbling of the Iraqi military set off a crisis with fears for the security of Baghdad. Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki eventually resigned under pressure, and al-Abadi took over in August 2014. Kurds secured northern Iraq against further ISIS advances, and the Iraqi military and Shia militias were able to hold defense lines north of the capital. The anti-ISIS forces began their  www.mesop.de