As many Syrian provinces, Anbar attracted militants from many countries as the terrorists of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant started carrying out their activities. As a result, Maliki decided to beat with an Iron fist.

Israa Al-Fass

 

The Iraqi province of al-Anbar, which occupies one-third of the national area, presents a diminutive image of what has been going on in several Syrian areas. The geographical position of Anbar on the Saudi, Jordanian and Syrian borders gives the Iraqi government an ability to gain the local popular support and to play an influential strategic role in the region.

As many Syrian provinces, Anbar attracted militants from many countries as the terrorists of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) started carrying out their activities. As a result, Maliki decided to beat with an Iron fist.

Security sources asserted that dozens of ISIL militants were killed and arrested by the Iraqi army and that the group's snipers spread on the roofs of the province's buildings and took the residents as human shields.

The sources also noted that ISIL militants hold the Saudi, Algerian and Tunisian nationalities and that some of them escaped to the city of Tikrit which is considered as a safe haven for ISIL terrorists.

The Iraqi army redeployed its troops outside Anbar cities, turning the command to the local police after ending the sit-in and discovering car bombs within its arena, before it moved to chase the takfiri militants who fled to Anbar desert.

The security sources added that the local residents of Fallujah and Ramadi were surprised by ISIL militants who carried out military manipulations after the army redeployment.

The local residents and tribes drew a distress alert to the army to save them from the militants, yet the army insisted on besieging the cities and letting the tribal and Sahwa fighters face ISIL terrorists.

"All Anbar residents must keep home because we will fight ISIL militants on the streets," Sahwa Chief Ahmad abu Risha said.

A key cleric in Anbar also asked all people to hold weapons and fight the militants.

Al-Matlabi: ISIL Fights Proxy War for Saudi Arabia

According to the member of the Law State coalition Saad al-Matlabi, the governmental decision comes in harmony with the public will and desire and the stance of the tribes assert that they are convinced of the rightness of the government option.

Al-Matlabi added that MP Ahmad al-Alwani and other figures embraced terrorism and fancied that they may benefit from their instigation and to impose political givens.

Al-Matlaabi told Al-Manar website that Saudi Arabia and Jordan provide the militants with all their political and military needs to fight the Iraqi army.

Arab media outlets try to instigate the public by circulating that Shiite army is fighting the Sunnis in Iraq; however the truth is that who are fighting ISIL terrorists are the Sunni tribal fighters and Sahwa gunmen.

Regarding the resignation of  40 Iraqi deputies, al-Matlabi noted that their step comes in context of local political utilization and that they got embarrassed due to the tribal stance which supported the governmental option.

Although the battles may take a long time, the Iraqi government will be able to strike the terrorist groups so that it gains the public support and the strategic position in the region as a main country in the axis which is fighting terrorism.

 

Translated by Mohamed Salami