Al Qaeda Is Taking Over Whole Cities in Iraq
Late last month, the Iraqi cities of Ramadi and Fallujah fell to tribal militants linked to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), a homegrown franchise of al Qaeda.
After taking the cities, the militants—who are understood to be locals of Anbar, the Sunni province where both Ramadi and Fallujah are located—hoisted black al Qaeda flags over government buildings and police stations. Their assault followed the Shiite-led government ignoring Sunni protests for reforms that would put them on par with their Shiite countrymen, and came just days after Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki ordered security forces to clear a Sunni protest camp amid claims that it had become an ISIS headquarters.
In response to the takeover of Fallujah and the militants’ partial control of Ramadi, Maliki forged a deal with some of Anbar’s prominent tribal leaders and sheikhs, convincing them to work with the Iraqi army to secure the two cities. Ahmed Abu Reesha, a Sunni tribal chief aligned with Maliki, claimed on Saturday that these pro-government tribes have reclaimed most of Ramadi and said that the “next battle will be in Fallujah.”
“Ramadi, in many respects, has been far less significant in terms of actual presence of ISIS,” said Charles Lister, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Doha Center. “But, in Fallujah, the situation is far more complicated, because tribes appear to be split down the middle. Some are linked with ISIS and the other half have decided to side with the security forces.”
Notes
yimra reblogged this from vicenews amanireese-blog liked this
kit1man liked this
snowcoast liked this
theurbanrednecks-blog reblogged this from vicenews
individual-clones-blog reblogged this from vicenews ewdohaas liked this
petskulls reblogged this from c54 byappointmentonly reblogged this from vicemag
kaz3kag3 reblogged this from onloveonlife
onloveonlife reblogged this from vicenews nobirthnodeath liked this
souljah31 liked this
isillaure reblogged this from vicenews
replek reblogged this from vicenews
6pillars reblogged this from vicemag
thejedistories reblogged this from vicemag
sarahstargazer reblogged this from vicemag
cidtheobscure reblogged this from vicemag
iiloe reblogged this from vicemag
metalheadhippieredneck liked this
smellofsleepto liked this
derrickn87 reblogged this from vicemag
charliemikeadventure reblogged this from vicemag
leviclancyyy liked this
carechimba reblogged this from vicemag
aymard21 liked this
supercrap liked this
libertado63 reblogged this from thegreenteacrimewavestudio
ifilikeityoulikeit liked this
vicenews posted this
- Show more notes