A statement from Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's office said that "four F-16 jets lave landed earlier in their air base near the town of Balad, 80 km north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, in Salahudin province."
The four planes are the first batch of 36 jet fighters ordered by the Iraqi government to boost the capabilities of the Iraqi security forces in their fight against the IS militants who took control of large swathes of territories in several Sunni provinces in the country.
On June 25, one Iraqi F-16 jet fighter crashed during a training mission at a US air base in the US
The delivery came as the Iraqi authorities announced the start of a major offensive against IS militants to free key cities and towns in Anbar province from IS militants.
Iraqi security forces and allied paramilitary militias, known as Hashd Shaabi, or popular mobilization, have been fighting for months to retake control of key cities and towns in Iraq's largest province of Anbar since the IS militants seized most of the province and tried to advance toward Baghdad, but several counter attacks by security forces and Shiite militias have pushed them back.
The security situation in Iraq has drastically deteriorated since June 2014, when bloody clashes broke out between Iraqi security forces and the IS militants.
The IS militants took control of the country's northern city of Mosul and later seized swathes of territories after Iraqi security forces abandoned their posts in Nineveh and other predominantly Sunni provinces.
Source:Xinhua - globaltimes.cn
13/7/15
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Iraqi operation to retake Anbar province underway...
ReplyDeleteIraqi troops backed by mainly Shi'ite Muslim militias launched military operations on Monday to recapture the country's largest province Anbar from ISIS militants, a military statement broadcast on state television said.
The announcement of the offensive comes two months after ISIS militants seized Anbar's capital Ramadi, extending their control over the Sunni Muslim province west of Baghdad.
"At 5 o'clock this morning operations to liberate Anbar were launched," said a joint military command statement read out on state television.
It said the offensive was being carried out by the army, mainly Shi'ite militia known as Hashid Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation) units, special forces, police and local Sunni Muslim tribal fighters.
The statement gave no other details, but military officers and Hashid Shaabi commanders have said the initial target will be the city of Falluja, about 50 km (30 miles) west of Baghdad.......Reuters...........alarabiya.net
Iraq deploys U.S.-trained troops for the first time...
ReplyDeleteIraq has for the first time deployed soldiers trained by the U.S.-led coalition in their campaign to retake the city of Ramadi from Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants, the U.S. military said on Thursday.
The disclosure came during an unannounced visit by U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter to Baghdad, where he met Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and underscored the need for capable Iraqi ground forces to battle back ISIS.
“We’re making some progress. We need to make more,” Carter told U.S. troops gathered at Baghdad airport...Reuters....alarabiya.net
24/7/15