To beat ISIS, kick out US-led coalition: No will to fight

Islamic State claims responsibility for Baghdad hotel bombs Fri, May 29 09:49 AM EDT image BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Islamic State claimed responsibility on Friday for bombings outside two heavily fortified five-star hotels in the Iraqi capital that killed 10 people. In a statement, Islamic State said a suicide bomber called Abu Qutaiba had parked a car outside the Ishtar hotel in central Baghdad late on Thursday before driving another vehicle laden with 230 kg of explosives to the nearby Babylon hotel. The bomber detonated himself and the vehicle he was driving there around the same time the first car bomb exploded, "killing and wounding dozens of infidels", according to the statement. Iraqi authorities lifted a decade-old night-time curfew on Baghdad early this year, seeking to restore a sense of normality to the capital as security forces battle Islamic State insurgents who have overrun large parts of the country. But the rate of bombings in Baghdad has increased since then. Militants seized Ramadi, the Anbar provincial capital west of Baghdad, on May 17 in the most significant military setback to the government since a U.S.-led coalition launched a campaign of air strikes against Islamic State last August. (Reporting by Omar Fahmy and Saif Hameed; Writing by Isabel Coles; Editing by Mark Heinrich) Sharmine Narwani is a commentator and analyst of Middle East geopolitics. She tweets @snarwani Get short URL Published time: May 27, 2015 13:06 A car is engulfed by flames during clashes in the city of Ramadi (Reuters / Stringer) A car is engulfed by flames during clashes in the city of Ramadi (Reuters / Stringer) Trends Islamic State Tags Air Force, Arms, Army, Conflict, Drones, History, Human rights, Iran, Iraq, Israel, John Kerry, Lebanon, Mass media, Military, Opposition, Politics, Religion, Russia, Security, Syria, Terrorism, USA, Violence, War It’s been a bad time for foes of ISIS. Islamic State scored a neat hat-trick by invading strategic Ramadi in Iraq’s mainly Sunni Anbar province, occupying Syria’s historic gem Palmyra, and taking over Al-Tanf, the last remaining border crossing with Iraq. The multinational, American-led ‘Coalition’ launched last August to thwart Islamic State’s (IS, formerly ISIS) march across Syria and Iraq…did nothing. And so Baghdad and Washington are pointing fingers, each accusing the other of being asleep on the job. US Defense Secretary Ash Carter struck a low blow on Sunday in a CNN interview: “What apparently happened was that the Iraqi forces just showed no will to fight. They vastly outnumbered the opposing force. That says to me… that we have an issue with the will of the Iraqis to fight and defend themselves.” Carter must have forgotten that Iraqis staved off an ISIS occupation of Ramadi for almost 18 months. He also forgot that it was Iraqis who defended and/or recovered Amerli, Suleiman Beg, Tuz Khurmatu, Jurf al-Sakhar, Jalula, Saadiyah, Khanaqin, Muqdadiyah, Baquba, Udhaim Dam, Tharthar Dam, Habbaniyah, Haditha, Al-Baghdadi, Mosul Dam, Mount Sinjar, Zumar, Erbil, Gwer, Makhmur, dozens of Christian villages in the Nineveh Plains, Tikrit, Samarra, Balad, Dhuluiya, Dujail, Ishaqi, Al-Alam, Al-Dour, Albu Ajil, Awja, Al-Mutassim, Mukayshifa, Ajil and Alas oilfields, Hamrin mountains, Baiji oil refinery, scores of villages in the provinces of Salaheddine, Diyala, Kirkuk, Anbar, and Babil – and the capital city, Baghdad. The Iraqis have shot back. Key MP Hakim al-Zamili blames Ramadi’s collapse on the US’s failure to provide “good equipment, weapons and aerial support” to troops. Deputy Prime Minister Saleh Mutlaq, himself a Sunni from Anbar Province, concluded that the Americans were coming up short in all areas. "The Coalition airstrikes are not enough to eliminate IS." Furthermore, the US policy of recruiting Sunni tribes for the fight, he added, was “too late” – it is "important but not enough." If ever there was an understatement, this is it. Washington’s long-stated objective of rallying together a vetted Sunni fighting force - or its equivalent in the form of a National Guard – has always served as a placeholder to avoid facing realities. One thing we have learned from IS gains in small and large Sunni towns alike, is that the extremist group prides itself on sleeper cells and alliances inside of these areas. Sunni tribes and families, both, are divided on their support of IS. And the militants ensure that everyone else falls in line through a brutal campaign of inflicting fear and pain indiscriminately. So the likelihood of a significant, anti-IS, well-trained and equipped Sunni fighting force emerging anytime soon is just about nil. So too is the idea of a US-led Coalition air force that can cripple Islamic State. Washington has run fewer sorties over Syria and Iraq in the nine months since inception of its air campaign, than Israel ran in its entire three-week Gaza blitz in 2008-09. Where were the American bombers when Ramadi and Palmyra were being taken? And why does the US Air Force only seem to engage in earnest when their Kurdish allies are being threatened – as in Kobani (Ain al-Arab), Syria, and Erbil in Iraq? Reuters Reuters US calculations for Syria & Iraq If actions speak louder than words, then Washington’s moves in the Mideast have been deafening. Forget talk of a ‘unified Iraq’ with a ‘strong central government’. And definitely forget loudly-proclaimed objectives of ‘training moderate forces’ to ‘fight off IS’ across the Jordanian and Turkish borders in Syria. That’s just talk. An objective look at US interests in the region paint an entirely different picture. The Americans seek to maintain absolute hegemony in the Mideast, even as they exit costly military occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan. Their primary interests are 1) access to low cost oil and gas, 2) propping up Israel, and more recently, 3) undermining Russian (and Chinese) influence in the region. Clinging on to hegemony would be a whole lot easier without the presence of a powerful, independent Islamic Republic of Iran, which continues to throw a wrench in many of Washington’s regional projects. So hegemony is somewhat dependent on weakening Iran – and its supportive alliances. With the removal of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, the US inadvertently extended Iran’s arc of influence in a direct geographic line to Palestine, leaving the Israeli colonial project vulnerable. Former President George W. Bush immediately took on the task of destroying this Resistance Axis by attempting to neuter Iranian allies Hezbollah, Syria and Hamas – and failed. The Arab Spring presented a fresh opportunity to regroup: the US and its Turkish and Persian Gulf allies swung into action to create conditions for regime-change in Syria. The goal? To break this geographic line from Iran - through Iraq, Syria and Lebanon - to Palestine. When regime-change failed, the goalpost moved to the next best plan: dividing Syria into several competing chunks, which would weaken the central state and create a pro-US ‘buffer’ along the border with Israel. Weakening the central government in Iraq by dividing the state along Kurdish, Sunni and Shiite lines has also been a priority for the Americans. You only have to look at recent US actions in Iraq to see this unspoken plan in action. Washington’s most intensive airstrikes to date were when Kurdish Erbil and its environs came under threat by ISIS. Congress has breached all international norms by ushering through legislation to directly arm Sunni and Kurdish militias and bypass the central government in Baghdad. And despite endless promises and commitments, the Americans have failed at every hurdle to train and equip the Iraqi Army and security forces to do anything useful. A weak, divided Iraq can never become a regional powerhouse allied with Iran and the Resistance Axis. Likewise a weak, divided Syria. But without US control over these central governments, the only way to achieve this is 1) through the creation of sectarian and ethnic strife that could carve out pro-US buffers inside the ‘Resistance states’ and/or 2) through the creation of a hostile ‘Sunni buffer’ to break this line from Iran to Palestine. A member of the Iraqi security forces stands guard during a patrol in the city of Ramadi (Reuters / Stringer) Today, America’s ‘Sunni buffer’ is Islamic State General Walid Sukariyya, a Sunni, pro-resistance member of Lebanon’s parliament, agrees. “ISIS will be better for the US and Israel than having a strong Iran, Iraq and Syria…If they succeed at this, the Sunni state in Iraq will split the resistance from Palestine.” While Washington has long sought to create a buffer in Iraq on the Syrian border, it has literally spent years trying – and failing – to find, then mold, representative Sunni Iraqi leaders who will comfortably toe a pro-American line. An example of this is the Anbar delegation US General John Allen handpicked last December for a DC tour, which excluded representatives of the two most prominent Sunni tribes fighting IS in Iraq – the Albu Alwan and Albu Nimr. A spokesman for the tribes, speaking to Al-Jarida newspaper, objected at the time: "We are fighting ISIL and getting slaughtered, while suffering from a shortage of weapons. In the meantime, others are going to Washington to get funds and will later be assigned as our leaders." But why ignore Sunni groups who are unreservedly opposed to IS? Aren’t they America’s natural constituents inside Iraq? The Takfiri extremist groups serve a purpose for Washington. IS has had the ability - where competing Sunni factions, with their ever-growing lists of demands from Baghdad, have not – to transform the US’ ‘buffer’ project into a physical reality. And Washington has not needed to expend blood, treasure or manpower to get the job done. Last week, the government watchdog group Judicial Watch published a secret (now declassified) 2012 US Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) document that sheds light on American calculations in Syria. Written just 16 months into the 50-month-long Syrian conflict, the highly-redacted DIA document discloses the following key revelations: "The Salafist, the Muslim Brotherhood and AQI (Al-Qaeda in Iraq) are the major forces driving the insurgency in Syria." "The West, Gulf countries and Turkey support the opposition." The Syrian government has focused its priorities on securing pro-government areas and major transportation routes, which means "the regime decreased its concentration in areas adjacent to the Iraqi borders (al Hasaka and Der Zor).” "Opposition forces are trying to control the eastern areas (Hasaka and Der Zor) adjacent to the western Iraqi borders (Mosul and Anbar)…Western countries, the Gulf and Turkey are supporting these efforts." "The deterioration of the situation…creates the ideal atmosphere for AQI to return to its old pockets in Mosul and Ramadi…" "If the situation unravels there is the opportunity of establishing a declared or undeclared Salafist Principality in eastern Syria, and this is exactly what the supporting powers to the opposition want, in order to isolate the Syrian regime, which is considered the strategic depth of the Shia expansion (Iraq and Iran)." The DIA brief makes clear that the escalation of conflict in Syria will create further sectarianism and radicalization, which will increase the likelihood of an ‘Islamic State’ on the Syrian-Iraqi border, one that would likely be manned by the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI). So what did Washington do when it received this information? It lied. Less than one month after the DIA report was published, US Secretary of State John Kerry told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee this about the Syrian opposition: "I just don't agree that a majority are Al-Qaeda and the bad guys. That's not true. There are about 70,000 to 100,000 oppositionists ... Maybe 15 percent to 25 percent might be in one group or another who are what we would deem to be bad guys…There is a real moderate opposition that exists.” Using the fabricated storyline of ‘moderate rebels’ who need assistance to fight a ‘criminal Syrian regime’, the US government kept the Syrian conflict buzzing, knowing full well the outcome would mean the establishment of a Sunni extremist entity spanning the Syrian-Iraqi border…which could cripple, what the Americans call, “the strategic depth of the Shia expansion.” As US Council on Foreign Relations member and terrorism analyst Max Abrahms conceded on Twitter: "The August 5, 2012 DIA report confirms much of what Assad has been saying all along about his opponents both inside & outside Syria." Fakhreddin's Castle (top), is pictured in the historical city of Palmyra, Syria (Reuters / Nour Fourat) How to fight this American “Frankenstein” Since last year, numerous Iraqi officials have complained about the US airdropping weapons to IS - whether deliberately or inadvertently remains disputed. Military sources, on the other hand, have made clear that the US-led Coalition ignores many of the Iraqi requests for air cover during ground operations. If the US isn't willing to play ball in Iraq's existential fight against IS, then why bother with the Americans at all? Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi is viewed as a ‘weak’ head of state - a relatively pro-American official who will work diligently to keep a balance between US interests and those of Iraq's powerful neighbor, Iran. But after the disastrous fall of Ramadi, and more bad news from inside Syria, Abadi has little choice but to mitigate these losses, and rapidly. The prime minister has now ordered the engagement of thousands of Hashd al-Shaabi (Shiite paramilitary groups, commonly known as the Popular Mobilization Forces) troops in the Anbar to wrest back control of Ramadi. And this - unusually - comes with the blessings of Anbar's Sunni tribes who voted overwhelmingly to appeal to the Hashd for military assistance. Joining the Hashd are a few thousand Sunni fighters, making this a politically palatable response. If the Ramadi operation goes well, this joint Sunni-Shiite effort (which also proved successful in Tikrit) could provide Iraq with a model to emulate far and wide. The recent losses in Syria and Iraq have galvanized IS' opponents from Lebanon to Iran to Russia, with commitments pouring in for weapons, manpower and funds. If Ramadi is recovered, this grouping is unlikely to halt its march, and will make a push to the Syrian border through IS-heavy territory. There is good reason for this: the militants who took Ramadi came across the Syrian border - in full sight of US reconnaissance capabilities. A senior resistance state official told me earlier this year: “We will not allow the establishment of a big (extremist) demographic and geographic area between Syria and Iraq. We will work to push Syrian ISIS inside Syria and Iraqi ISIS inside Iraq.” Right now, the key to pushing back Takfiri gains inside Syria's eastern and northwestern theaters lies in the strengthening of the Iraqi military landscape. And an absolute priority will be in clearing the IS ‘buffer’ between the two states. Eighteen months ago, in an analysis about how to fight jihadist militants from the Levant to the Persian Gulf, I wrote that the solution for this battle will be found only within the region, specifically from within those states whose security is most compromised or under threat: Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Iran. I argued that these four states would be forced to increase their military cooperation as the battles intensified, and that they would provide the only 'boots on the ground' in this fight. And they will. But air cover is a necessary component of successful offensive operations, even in situations of unconventional warfare. If the US and its flimsy Coalition are unable or unwilling to provide the required reconnaissance assistance and the desired aerial coverage, as guided by a central Iraqi military command, then Iraq should look elsewhere for help. Iran and Russia come to mind - and we may yet get there. Iraq and Syria need to merge their military strategies more effectively - again, an area where the Iranians and Russians can provide valuable expertise. Both states have hit a dangerous wall in the past few weeks, and the motivation for immediate and decisive action is high today. Lebanese resistance group Hezbollah is coming into play increasingly as well - its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah has recently promised that Hezbollah will no longer limit itself geographically, and will go where necessary to thwart this Takfiri enemy. The non-state actors that make up the jihadist and Takfiri core cannot be beaten by conventional armies, which is why local militias accustomed to asymmetric warfare are best suited for these battles. Criticizing the US's utterly nonexistent response to the Ramadi debacle yesterday, Iran's elite Quds Force Commander Qassem Suleimani points out: "Today, there is nobody in confrontation with [IS] except the Islamic Republic of Iran, as well as nations who are next to Iran or supported by Iran.” The Iranians have become central figures in the fight against terror, and are right next door to it - as opposed to Washington, over 6,000 miles away. If the US has any real commitment to the War on Terror, it should focus on non-combat priorities that are also essential to undermine extremism: 1) securing the Turkish and Jordanian borders to prevent any further infiltration of jihadists into Syria and Iraq, 2) sanctioning countries and individuals who fund and weaponize the Takfiris, most of whom are staunch US allies, now ironically part of the ‘Coalition’ to fight IS, and 3) sharing critical intelligence about jihadist movements with those countries engaged in the battle. It is time to cut these losses and bring some heavyweights into this battle against extremism. If the US-directed Coalition will not deliver airstrikes under the explicit command of sovereign states engaged at great risk in this fight, it may be time to clear Iraqi and Syrian airspace of coalition jets, and fill those skies with committed partners instead. MORE: The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT. Agencies BAGHDAD: A senior ISIS figure known as “the blind judge” has made an appearance in the Iraqi city of Ramadi, asserting the militant group’s dominion over it as security forces and Shiite militias prepare a counterattack. Residents of Ramadi said that a blind man with one hand and his head shrouded had delivered a speech in the Anbar provincial capital’s main mosque after evening prayers Wednesday. They did not know who he was but recognized him to be a senior figure because he was flanked by a large number of guards and said his accent indicated he was Iraqi. Iraqi security expert Hisham al-Hashimi identified the man as Ali Attiya al-Jubouri, who is also known as Abu Asim, or “the blind judge” of ISIS. “This cleric who appeared in Ramadi yesterday is very famous,” Hashimi said. “He is the second highest religious authority after Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, and the fifth man in the organization of ISIS.” Hashimi said the appearance of the blind judge was designed to win over residents of Ramadi, many of whom sided with the government and fended off the militants until they were finally overcome on May 17. Iraqi forces thwarted an attack by ISIS militants on their front line position east of Ramadi Thursday. Police and pro-government tribal fighters on the frontline in Husaiba al-Sharqiya, around 7 km east of Ramadi, said the militants had tried to cut them off from behind by crossing the Euphrates River at dawn. “They started the attack under cover of mortars and sniper shots, but we managed to abort it,” Sunni tribal leader Amir al-Fahdawi said. “We have enough troops deployed and a couple of tanks positioned near the bridge.” South of Ramadi, Shiite militia fighters along with police pressed an advance in al-Tash area late Wednesday but came under attack from an ISIS suicide bomber driving an armored vehicle packed with explosives. Police sources said seven militiamen had been killed and the forces, mainly Shiite fighters from the Popular Mobilization militia force, were forced to retreat. Iraq announced an operation this week aimed at driving the militants out of their remaining strongholds in Salahuddin province as well as Anbar, most of which is under ISIS control. Separately, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said Pentagon officials have begun to examine how the U.S. military could better equip and train Iraqi troops after the fall of Ramadi. Carter told reporters on his plane to Asia that he had convened a group of defense policy officials and military officers from U.S. Central Command and the Pentagon’s Joint Staff to look at how “we can enhance, hasten” the mission to train and equip Iraqi forces. The initial meeting took place Tuesday before Carter departed on a trip to Asia. “The events of recent weeks there [in Iraq] have highlighted the central importance of having a capable ground partner and that’s what the purpose of our train-and-equip program is. So we are looking,” Carter said. Also, the government has exhumed the remains of 470 people believed to have been executed by ISIS near Tikrit last year in what is known as the Speicher massacre, the health minister said. “We have exhumed the bodies of 470 Speicher martyrs from burial sites in Tikrit,” Adila Hammoud told a news conference in Baghdad, adding that the number was not final. In June 2014, armed men belonging or allied to ISIS abducted hundreds of young, mostly Shiite recruits from Speicher military base, just outside the city of Tikrit. They were then lined up in several locations and executed one by one, as shown in pictures and footage later released by ISIS. The highest estimate for the number of people killed stands at 1,700. A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Daily Star on May 29, 2015, on page 10.

Toll rises to 57 as survivors tell of Afghan volleyball bombing

Toll rises to 57 as survivors tell of Afghan volleyball bombing By Emal Haidary 1 hour ago  . Afghan security forces arive at the site of another suicide car bomb at the gate of Kabul's Green … Survivors of a horrific suicide attack which killed 57 people at a volleyball game in eastern Afghanistan told Monday how the blast ripped through a crowd of spectators enjoying the final moments of the match. In the country's deadliest single attack since 2011, the bomber detonated his explosives Sunday as hundreds of young men and boys attended a tournament featuring three local teams in the volatile province of Paktika. Separately, two NATO soldiers were killed in an attack in the east of Afghanistan on Monday morning, the coalition said, giving no further details. Paktika provincial spokesman Mukhlis Afghan said in a statement the death toll from Sunday's blast had risen to 57 after 15 people died of their injuries overnight. "The game was about to end when we heard a big bang," Salaam Khan, 19, told AFP at a military hospital in Kabul where he was flown for treatment to his injured chest and right leg. "I was shouting for help. Just beside me was a dead army officer," he said. "There were local police and commanders watching the game. I saw some killed and wounded." Najib Danish, deputy spokesman for the interior ministry, said four local police were among the fatalities, but they did not appear to have been specially targeted. The attack underlined the challenges facing President Ashraf Ghani, who came to power in September, as US-led NATO troops wind down operations and Afghan security forces take over full responsibility for fighting Taliban insurgents. "I was watching the game, sitting on the ground with my brother, when the blast happened," said Mohammad Rasoul, 11, who was wounded in the chest and whose brother was in intensive care. Afghan security forces have struggled to counter Taliban insurgents (AFP Photo/Shah Marai) "People were covered in blood all around me. There were many friends of mine among them." Many of the wounded were children or young men, wrapped in bloody bandages. Doctor Seyawash, head of health services at the hospital in Kabul, told reporters that about 12 victims were in a critical condition. The injuries were from ball bearings packed in the bomb. There was no immediate response from the Taliban, but the insurgents often distance themselves from attacks that claim many civilian lives. The blast, in the Yahya Khail district of Paktika, came at about 5:00 pm (1230 GMT) Sunday as crowds peaked at the volleyball, a popular sport among young men in Afghanistan. - 'Inhumane, un-Islamic' - "I arrived after the bombing, it was an emergency situation. People were rushing the dead and wounded into cars," said Ghulam Mohammad, 60, whose injured grandson cradled a teddy bear in hospital. "I went looking for my son and grandson. My son was fine but my grandson was wounded and we came to Kabul in a helicopter." Late on Sunday President Ghani visited victims at the 400-bed military hospital in the Afghan capital. An Afghan policeman looks at a bomb crater after a suicide attack targeted a vehicle convoy of Afgha … He condemned the attack as "inhumane and un-Islamic", adding that "this kind of brutal killing of civilians cannot be justified". Paktika, one of the most restive provinces in Afghanistan, borders Pakistan's lawless tribal areas, where many insurgent leaders seek refuge from NATO and Afghan forces. Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif denounced the bombing and vowed to fight the "terrorism that is the common enemy of both countries". Paktika was also hit by a massive suicide blast in July, when a bomber driving a truck packed with explosives killed at least 41 people at a busy market in Urgun district. In April last year 46 people -- 36 civilians and 10 troops and police -- were killed in a Taliban attack against the law courts in the western province of Farah. A suicide blast at a shrine in Kabul on the Shiite holy day of Ashura in December 2011 killed 80. Sunday's attack occurred on the same day that the lower house of parliament approved agreements to allow about 12,500 NATO-led troops to stay on next year. US-led NATO combat operations will finish at the end of this year, but the Taliban have launched a series of offensives that have severely tested Afghan soldiers and police. The new NATO mission -- named Resolute Support -- will focus on supporting the Afghan forces, in parallel with US counter-terrorism operations. But fears are growing that Afghanistan could tip into a cycle of violence as the US military presence declines, with the national security forces already suffering huge casualties. ============================= Islamic State fighters battle Iraqi forces near Baiji refinery Tue, Nov 25 09:25 AM EST image 1 of 3 BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Islamic State insurgents battled Iraqi forces in the center of Baiji on Tuesday, a week after the army broke their prolonged siege of the country's largest oil refinery just outside the town, an army officer and residents said. The renewed fighting in Baiji by the Islamist militants, who control thousands of square miles of territory in Iraq and Syria, appeared aimed at reimposing that stranglehold around the sprawling oil facility 2 miles (4 km) to the north. Islamic State (IS) fighters were present in four of Baiji's 12 neighborhoods, as well as areas on the perimeter of the sprawling refinery complex. But the army controlled its southern approaches, preventing insurgents from surrounding it, according to a Baiji resident who toured the area. On Monday an Islamic State video circulated on the Internet showing its fighters denying that they had been driven out of Baiji, and what purported to be two suicide truck bombings targeting the refinery defenses. "Yes, they infiltrated some areas," one of the speakers said, referring to the Iraqi security forces. "But, God willing, either they will withdraw or they will be exterminated." One resident of the town some 200 km (125 miles) north of Baghdad said IS gunmen launched an attack on Monday night in the center of Baiji, advancing into the town's Asri district. There had also been fighting in the Naft and Kahraba neighborhoods. Around the refinery, IS insurgents still held a housing complex on its western edge and were digging trenches in the Makhmour hills overlooking the installation from the north, despite coming under fire from helicopters, the resident said. To the east, he said, insurgents could be seen crossing the nearby Tigris river by boat. Islamic State seized Baiji and surrounded the refinery during a June offensive when it swept south towards the capital Baghdad, capturing cities, farmlands and oilfields and meeting virtually no resistance from Iraq government forces. Shi'ite militias and Kurdish peshmerga, backed by U.S.-led air strikes since August, have helped contain the radical Sunni insurgents and pushed them back in some provinces. But they have continued to make gains in the western Sunni province of Anbar. (Reporting by Raheem Salman; Writing by Dominic Evans; Editing by Michael Georgy/Mark Heinrich) ==================== Peshmerga and Shiite militias vie for control of liberated town By RUDAW 12 hours ago - - ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—Peshmerga forces have asked the Shiite Badr brigade to handover the control of Saadiya in northern Diyala to the Kurds a day after the town was liberated from Islamist militants, a Peshmerga spokesman said. “There is the Badr brigade in Saadiya now and we need to negotiate with them in order to take the town back from that militia force,” Brigadier Ahmed Latif, Peshmerga spokesperson in the area told Rudaw. “They [Shiite militia] helped the Peshmerga in taking back the town,” Latif added. Kurdish Peshmerga forces launched a massive attack on the Islamic State (ISIS) in Jalawla and Saadiya in the early hours of Sunday morning in which 20 Peshmerga fighters were killed and 49 others were wounded. “Many ISIS militants were killed but most of their bodies are lost under the rubble or drowned in Sirwan River,” said Latif. Shiite militia leaders claimed to have played a major role in the offensive, but on Monday the Ministry of Peshmerga said that both towns were “liberated only by the Kurdish Peshmerga forces.” “In Saadiya Iraqi federal troops took part in the offensive, too” Jabar Yawar, Peshmerga ministry chief of staff said in a statement. The Kurdish Peshmerga and Shiite militias have clashed on a few occasions in the past in Tuz Khurmatu and Amerli where militia groups maintain a heavy presence. Meanwhile, Anwar Hussein, the mayor of Jalawla urged residents of both towns to “not hurry in returning to their homes until all bombs and explosives have been cleared by the special teams.” =============

Islamic State launch gunboat attack on river-side town: "Degrade and Destroy" Islamic State

U.S. banks on strong Iraq coalition, but allies are hesitant Sat, Sep 13 04:36 AM EDT image By John Irish PARIS (Reuters) - The United States says it is "comfortable" it can forge an international coalition to fight Islamic State, but with Western and Middle Eastern allies hesitant, it risks finding itself out on a limb. President Barack Obama this week unveiled a rough plan to fight the Islamist militants simultaneously in Iraq and Syria, thrusting the United States directly into two different wars in which nearly every country in the region has a stake. The broad concept of a coalition has been accepted in Western capitals and on Thursday 10 Arab states, including rivals Saudi Arabia and Qatar, signed up to a "co-ordinated military campaign". "I'm comfortable that this will be a broad-based coalition with Arab nations, European nations, the United States, others," U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said in Ankara on Friday. But he added it was "premature" to set out what tasks individual coalition partners would shoulder. And the devil could be in the details. "This coalition has to be efficient and targeted," said a senior French diplomat. "We have to keep our autonomy. We don't want to be the United States' subcontractor. For the moment they haven't made their intentions clear to us." The United States and Britain pulled out of striking Syrian President Bashar al-Assad last year hours before French planes had been due to take off, leaving President Francois Hollande embarrassed and isolated. This time around Paris wants clear commitment and international legality for any action in Syria. In Iraq, it wants a political plan encompassing all sides of society to be in place for the period after Islamic State (IS) is weakened. "The coalition must be the most legal possible," said former French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine. "It needs members of the Security Council and as many Arab countries as possible and there has to be a follow-up. Otherwise it will all start again in three months. There needs to be a long-term vision." That is the idea of a conference in Paris on Sept. 15 that will bring Iraqi authorities together with 15-20 international players. The talks come ahead of a U.N. Security Council ministerial meeting on Sept. 19 and a heads of state meeting at the U.N. General Assembly at the end of the month. "The goal is to coordinate aid, support and action for the unity of Iraq and against this terrorist group," Hollande, the first Western leader to travel to Iraq since Islamic State's advances in June, told reporters in Baghdad on Friday. France has so far sent weapons to Kurdish fighters in Iraq and humanitarian aid. It is likely to send about 250 special forces troops to help direct strikes for Rafale fighter jets. But what it can offer is limited. France's forces are stretched, with more than 5,000 troops in Mali and Central African Republic. Its planned 450 million euros overseas defense budget for 2014 is already over a billion euros, at a time when the government is under severe pressure to cut spending. BRITAIN KEEN - TO A DEGREE Britain, Washington's main ally in 2003, has sent mixed messages. It has stressed the West should not go over the heads of regional powers or neglect the importance of forming an inclusive government in Iraq. Like France, it is also cautious about action in Syria because of legal questions and Syrian government air defenses. In Iraq, it has delivered humanitarian aid, carried out surveillance, given weapons to Kurds and promised training. On military action, Britain supports U.S. air strikes and Prime Minister David Cameron has repeatedly said Britain itself has ruled nothing out except combat troops on the ground. "We need to keep working closely and talking, thinking about the strategy. It shouldn’t be presented too much as ‘here is the plan, these are the roles, who wants what’," said a British government official. With an election less than nine months away, the British government is well aware of public opposition to Britain's role in invading Iraq with the United States in 2003. Cameron is also scarred by the memory of an embarrassing parliamentary defeat last summer, when he recalled MPs during the summer recess only to fail to win their approval to leave open the possibility of military action against Syria. Members of the government have said they would again try to seek authorization from parliament for involvement in any strikes, unless it became necessary to act quickly due to a humanitarian emergency or a threat to Britain. "As the global resolve to tackle (IS) strengthens, we will consider carefully what role the United Kingdom should play in the international coalition," Foreign Office Minister David Lidington said on Friday. "The basic fact is that no decisions about UK military action have been taken or are being asked of us at the moment." Most other European countries appear unwilling to go beyond humanitarian and logistical aid. Germany and the Czech Republic have promised to help arm the Kurds. But Berlin has been adamant it will not take part in air strikes. NATO is ready to facilitate and coordinate airlift supplies, and could offer training to Iraqi forces. "We have to try to support and sustain the local protagonists who may be able to stop and contain Islamic State in those areas," Italian Defense Minister Roberta Pinotti said. "The Americans have chosen to carry out air strikes. We haven't yet chosen that," she said. ARABS AND TURKS ON BOARD? The U.S.-led coalition will want active military support from Middle Eastern states, to at least avoid the appearance of waging a Western "crusade". In the campaign to bring down former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, the United Arab Emirates contributed to air strikes, while Qatar provided weapons to rebels. But in Iraq, the stakes for regional players are higher. Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Jordan and Egypt are unlikely to want to take a key role in military operations. "The situation is critical on our border because (Islamic State) are close. Yes, Saudi Arabia is ready to help, but America must first show it is with us now," said a Saudi Arabian military officer in Paris last week. Turkey, a NATO member which shares long borders with both Syria and Iraq, has so far also conspicuously avoided committing itself to the new military campaign. U.S. officials have played down hopes of persuading Ankara to take a combat role, focusing more on Turkey's efforts to stem the flow of foreign fighters crossing its territory and the provision of humanitarian aid. From the early days of the Syrian conflict, Turkey has backed mainly Sunni rebels fighting Assad. Although it is alarmed by Islamic State's rise, it is wary about any military action that might weaken Assad's foes. It is also nervous about strengthening Kurds in Iraq and Syria. Turkey's own Kurdish militants waged a three-decade insurgency against the Turkish state and are engaged in a delicate peace process. Pro-government newspapers on Friday welcomed Ankara's reluctance to take a frontline role in the coalition, questioning whether U.S.-led military action was the answer and drawing parallels with 2003, when Turkey's parliament rejected a U.S. request to use Turkish territory to invade Iraq. "In a coalition, you are not expected to do the same things. Some can provide humanitarian help, others financial and others military support," said another French diplomat. "The importance is that everything is coherent." (Additional reporting by Adrian Croft in Brussels, Kylie MacLellan in London and Jazon Szep in Ankara; Editing by Andrew Roche and Tom Heneghan) ====

Reidar Visser on Tuesday, 9 September 2014 1:40 no major promises have been issued along the lines of the pompous ( 1. Characterized by excessive self-esteem or exaggerated dignity; pretentious) Erbil agreement of 2010. In itself, perhaps not a bad thing. Also the timing of the whole process is admirable, for the first time entirely consistent with the Iraqi constitution. ISCI was awarded additional ministries, Badr and the Sadrists seem to have only two each, though the Sadrists also control one of the three deputy premier positions. Badr was at one point on the verge of boycotting the entire session after they were denied the interior ministry portfolio. As in previous government formations, the PM kept these portfolios for himself, though promising to present candidates within a week. The vice presidents have even less power, and it is an ironic sight to now have three major players in the previous term – Nuri al-Maliki, Ayad Allawi and Usama al-Nujayfi – in these sinecure-like positions. On a legal and constitutional note, parliament speaker Jibburi made it clear during the vote that he intends to follow a supreme court ruling that says “absolute majority” in the Iraqi constitution means “absolute majority of those present” as long as “absolute majority of parliament membership” is not expressly mentioned. This seems to indicate that whereas all blocs may have supported their candidates and made a strategic decision to be inside the government, wholehearted enthusiasm is still not widespread

. ====== Kerry calls new Baghdad government 'heart' of fight against Islamic State Wed, Sep 10 22:59 PM EDT image 1 of 7 By Jason Szep BAGHDAD (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday endorsed Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's plans to mend Baghdad's relations with Sunnis and Kurds, and said Iraq's new government was "the heart and backbone" of the fight against Islamic State. Kerry, on a tour of the Middle East to build military, political and financial support to defeat the militants controlling parts of Iraq and Syria, said: "We all have an interest in supporting the new government of Iraq."

" "The coalition that is at the heart of our global strategy I assure you will continue to grow and deepen in the days ahead ... because the United States and the world will simply not stand by to watch as ISIL's evil spreads." he said, using an alternative acronym for Islamic State. A new and inclusive Iraqi government has to be the engine of our global strategy against ISIL. Now the Iraqi parliament has approved a new cabinet with new leaders, with representation from all Iraqi communities, it’s full steam ahead."

In a statement later, after a speech by President Barack Obama in Washington laying out his strategy that depends on a strong coalition, Kerry said the new Baghdad government "forms the heart and the backbone of our anti-ISIL efforts." Obama sought to rally Americans behind another war in a region he has long sought to leave, backed by what Washington hopes will be a coalition of NATO and Gulf Arab allies committed to a campaign that could stretch beyond the end of Obama’s term in 2016. U.S. officials said Saudi Arabia, where Kerry will meet many regional allies on Thursday, had agreed to host a training program for Syrian rebels who the United States hopes will eventually help in the fight against the Islamist State. Kerry told Abadi he was encouraged by his plans for "reconstituting" the military and his commitment to political reforms reaching out to all of Iraq's religious and ethnic communities. Abadi formed his government on Monday in what was billed as a break from the more abrasive style of his predecessor Nuri al-Maliki, whose policies were blamed by many Iraqis for fuelling sectarianism and pushing the country to the brink of collapse. Islamic State fighters seized large chunks of Iraq's north and west this year, welcomed by many of the Sunni Muslim minority, who blamed the government for targeting them with indiscriminate arrests and discriminatory policies. Abadi appealed to the international community to help Iraq fight Islamic State, urging them "to act immediately to stop the spread of this cancer." Abadi faces multiple crises, from the need to convince the Sunnis they should stand with Baghdad against Islamic State to persuading minority Kurds not to break away and convincing his own majority Shi'ites he can protect them from Sunni hardliners. Kerry highlighted Abadi's readiness "to move forward rapidly on the oil agreements necessary for the Kurds, (and) on the representation of Sunnis in government." In a sign of the eagerness among Iraq's political elite for a fresh start, new Parliament Speaker Selim al-Jubouri, a Sunni, told Kerry: "We are ... hopeful that we will be able to defeat terrorist organisations and establish democracy in Iraq." ENTRENCHED SECTARIAN TENSIONS Unlike his predecessor, Abadi enjoys the support of nearly all of Iraq's major political groups, and the two most influential outside powers, Iran and the United States. U.S. officials hope he will present a unified front to weaken Islamic State, which has seized a third of both Iraq and Syria. But it will be hard to placate all the forces in Iraq. On Wednesday, cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, head of a powerful Shi'ite movement, said Iraq should not cooperate with "occupiers", a reference to the United States. Sadr's opinions hold sway over tens of thousands of militants. Three car bombs exploded on Wednesday in a Shi'ite neighborhood in eastern Baghdad, killing nine people and wounding 29, a police officer said. While it is unclear what steps will be taken to strengthen the Iraqi army after its collapse in the face of an Islamic State onslaught in June, the senior U.S. official said tentative plans for a new National Guard unit, announced by Abadi on Monday, were intended to deprive Islamic State of safe havens by handing over security to the provinces. Abadi in parliament on Monday described the proposed National Guard units as a means to absorb the Shi'ite militia groups now taking up the slack for a badly depleted army in fighting Islamic State. Iraqi and U.S. officials have said the units would be a mechanism for Sunni Muslims to defend their provinces against Islamic State. Kerry also touted the idea during his visit, saying he expected Abadi to take up the initiative in next week's cabinet meeting. Baghdad has lost control of the main Sunni provinces and the central government has yet to convince Sunnis it can be trusted. Sectarian tensions appeared as entrenched as ever, possibly worsened by a month of U.S. air strikes on Sunni jihadists. While Kurdish and Shi'ite fighters have regained ground, Sunni Muslims who fled the violence near the northern town of Amerli are being prevented from returning home and some have had their houses pillaged and torched. Sunni Arabs are also feeling a backlash in villages where they used to live alongside Kurds, who accuse them of collaborating with Islamic State. On Wednesday, Shi'ite militia north of Baghdad forced dozens of Sunni families from their homes during an offensive, stealing possessions and burning houses, a Shi'ite policeman and government source told Reuters, asking for anonymity to allow them to report on the offensive, which they said they opposed. While the U.S. official praised weeks of U.S. air strikes as "highly precise" and "strategically effective", he acknowledged much work lay ahead. "It’s going to be a very difficult, long road to get there," he said. Any campaign to defeat Islamic State could take one to three years, Kerry said. Kerry was to meet Jordan’s King Abdullah later on Wednesday, and travel on Thursday to Saudi Arabia for talks that will include Egypt, Turkey, Jordan and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which comprises Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar. Saudi Arabia is unnerved by the rapid advance of Islamic State and fears it could radicalise some of its own citizens. A senior U.S. official in Washington, speaking after a phone call between Obama and Saudi King Abdullah to discuss cooperation on Islamic State, said there was "a commitment from the kingdom of Saudi Arabia ... to be a full partner with us," including by hosting the rebels' training program. Arab League foreign ministers agreed on Sunday to take all necessary measures to confront Islamic State. In Jordan, Kerry is expected to receive requests for extra military aid, including helicopters and border security equipment, along with part of the $500 million the Obama administration has proposed to accelerate training of moderate Syrian rebels, a Jordanian official told Reuters. French President Francois Hollande will travel to Baghdad on Friday ahead of a conference of regional and international powers in Paris on Monday to coordinate efforts to tackle Islamic State. (Additional reporting by Oliver Holmes in Baghdad, Isabel Coles in Arbil, Suleiman Al-Khalidi in Amman, John Irish in Paris, Adrian Croft in Milan and Angus McDowall in Riyadh; Editing by Janet Lawrence, David Storey and Eric Walsh) ==== Top News Blast kills leader of Syrian Islamist group, other top figures Tue, Sep 09 16:39 PM EDT BEIRUT (Reuters) - An explosion killed the leader of one of Syria's most powerful Islamist insurgent groups Ahrar al-Sham on Tuesday, the group said, and an organization that monitors violence in the civil war said at least 28 of its commanders had died. Ahrar al-Sham is a hardline Islamist group and part of the Islamic Front alliance that has been in armed conflict with the Islamic State group which has seized swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq. A statement posted on Ahrar al-Sham's official Twitter feed said the blast had hit a meeting in Idlib province in northwest Syria and confirmed Hassan Aboud, the group's leader, among at least 12 dead. "We don't know the cause of the explosion yet," Abu Mustafa al-Absi, a member of Ahrar al-Sham's politburo told Al-Jazeera TV in an interview. "We do not rule out the infiltration of elements who were able to plant a bomb," he added. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the monitoring group, said some 50 of the group's leaders had been gathered at a house when the blast went off. Rami Abdulrahman, who runs the Observatory, said the blast had occurred inside the meeting. Ahrar al-Sham, which is widely believed to have received funding from Gulf states, aims to implement Islamic sharia law in Syria. It was at one point considered the strongest insurgent group in the Syrian civil war. Syrian state TV flashed an urgent news headline reporting Aboud's death. Syria descended into civil war after an uprising against President Bashar al-Assad's rule in 2011. The United Nations recently put the death toll above 191,000 people. In January another senior Ahrar al-Sham leader, Abu Khaled al-Soury, was killed in a suicide attack. Soury had fought alongside al Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden and was close to its current chief Ayman al-Zawahri. (Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky) ==== https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MUU-EZw7zM Mon, Sep 08 05:53 AM EDT BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Islamic State fighters attacked a riverside town north of Baghdad on Monday with gunboats and a car bomb, killing 17 people and wounding 54, a security source said. The source said the attack on Dhuluiya, around 70 km (45 miles) from the capital, was carried out before dawn and continued for two hours before the militants were pushed back. Among the dead in the attack, the largest of its kind in the area, were civilians and Iraqi forces. Most of the casualties were caused by the car bomb, which struck a market, the source said. Dhuluiya is part of a belt of Sunni Muslim towns north of Baghdad where the hardline Sunni Muslim Islamic State has managed to wrestle some control, often aligning with local militia who distrust the Shi'ite-led government. Islamic State fighters took advantage of the chaos in Iraq to muscle in and become the dominant force among Sunnis. US President Barack Obama ordered air strikes in northern Iraq last month as Kurdish-controlled territory fell to the Islamic State and the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan looked in danger. These have since spread to central Iraq. A tribal source near the Kurdish city of Kirkuk said Iraqi Air Force jets bombed two areas near the town of Hawijah, killing 14 civilians in Islamic State-controlled territory. (Reporting by Oliver Holmes; Editing by Dominic Evans) Kirk H. Sowell ‏@UticensisRisk 2m The breakdown of talks b/n Abadi & the Kurds is precisely what I expected given Abadi's record on oil & budget issues. ==================== Underage and trapped: female Iraqi factory workers need help BABIL, Iraq — Shayma Hassan, 16, walks 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) each day to the brick factory in Bahr al-Najaf in the city of Najaf, 161 kilometers (100 miles) south of Baghdad. Her hectic work day starts at 6 a.m. and ends at 5 p.m. Summary⎙ Print A tougher framework is needed to protect Iraqi girls who are working illegally in factories, as many are being exploited, harassed and sexually abused. Author Wassim Bassem Posted September 2, 2014 Translator(s)Cynthia Milan Along with four other women, Shayma moves bricks out of molds and into and out of the oven. For all this hard work, she gets paid $7 per day. “I never went to school because I live in the village and I need to make money. My only hope now is to have my own family, since my mother decided that I should get married,” she told Al-Monitor. Even when she's ill, Shayma has to work in this polluted environment to put food on the table, especially since her mother, who used to work in the same factory, is sick and can only take care of some plants around the house. Shayma’s employer Abu Haidar, who preferred not to give his full name, told Al-Monitor, while Shayma timidly stared at the floor, “The women here work with dignity and I help them with their living expenses." However, Abu Haidar added, “The wage is minimal, but most of the brick factories are no longer as profitable as they were before.” Many girls who work are violating the Iraqi labor law. For instance, the girls who work in the plastic waste recycling factories in the city of al-Mahawil, north of Hillah in the center of Babil province (100 kilometers, or 62 miles, south of Baghdad) are not 16 yet. The labor law prohibits minors from working and stipulates that education is mandatory up to age 16. In these factories, young girls work tirelessly on assorting garbage before putting it into thermal and plastic cutting machines for recycling. Saad al-Heli, the owner of a plastic waste recycling factory, told Al-Monitor, “Girls are more suitable [for this work] than boys, since they are more compliant.“ Fatimah, 16, told Al-Monitor, as she cleaned her face and hair from the plastic ooze coming from the machine, “I get paid $5 for about 6 hours of work.” As all other girls there, Fatimah comes from a poor family and has never been to school. However, she prefers to work in this female-only factory, because she was a victim of sexual assault when she worked in a factory with men. Fatimah refused to give details concerning the incident and she simply commented, “Working with men is risky,” referring to the incident. This is probably why Heli does not hire boys to work with the girls in his factory. “They created many problems and the police had to interfere,” he said. But he seems fine with hiring underage girls, saying, “There is no real supervision and I make sure to treat them like my own daughters.” Ghofran Majed, a local feminist activist, told Al-Monitor in the town of Babil: “Hiring uneducated young girls has serious social repercussions. … Field studies show that many working girls become victims of oppression and sexual harassment, which delays their marriage. Most of these young girls come from poor families that allow them to work because they need the money.” Ferial Mhamdawi, 15, has been working in factories since she was a child. She got married at a very young age, probably two or three years ago (parents in these regions of Iraq marry their daughters off at age 11 or 12), but is now divorced and back at work. “The biggest mistake of my life was not attending school,” she said. She married a man 20 years her senior who accused her of being involved with another man, which led to their divorce. In general, girls often become the victim of rumors that affects their reputation, according to social researcher Sakinah Daoud, who told Al-Monitor, “The future of young working girls remains uncertain until they get married. In case they do not, they risk [getting involved] in prostitution and the sex trade.” Suheila Abbas, a member of the council of Babil, told Al-Monitor: “The solution to this phenomenon is to create a social protection network, which prevents child labor as well as the labor of young girls, in addition to establishing laws that penalize illegal employment.” This first step, Abbas said, “Is to create job opportunities under the auspices of the government, while simultaneously launching civil society initiatives to provide medical care and proper education for all segments of society, especially women and children who are forced to work.” Read more: http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/09/iraq-underage-girls-working-illegal-exploitation.html#ixzz3CioK2JyP =========================== Iraq's Shi'ite militia, Kurds use U.S. air strikes to further own agendas Tue, Sep 09 03:33 AM EDT image By Isabel Coles SULEIMAN BEG Iraq (Reuters) - A small group of people pick through putrefying human remains laid out on plastic sheets by the side of a road in northern Iraq, searching for any trace of missing friends and relatives. Some had brought spades to help dig up the mass grave near Suleiman Beg after the town was retaken from Sunni Islamic State militants who held the area until last week. "They (Islamic State) slaughtered him simply because he was Shi'ite," said Jomaa Jabratollah, hauling the remnants of his friend, a truck driver, into a coffin, having identified him from the lighter in his breast pocket. "We must take revenge". Helped by the United States and Iran, Kurdish forces and Shi’ite militia are finally beating back Islamic State militants who overran most Sunni Arab areas in northern and central Iraq nearly three months ago. But the aftermath illustrates the unintended consequences of the U.S. air campaign against Islamic State. Kurdish and Shi'ite fighters have regained ground, but Sunni Muslims who fled the violence are being prevented from returning home and some have had their houses pillaged and torched. Rather than help keep the nation together, the air strikes risk being used by different factions for their own advantage in Iraq's sectarian and ethnic conflicts. The fallout also risks worsening grievances that helped Islamic State find support amongst Iraq's Sunnis, and allows the militant group to portray the U.S. strikes as targeting their minority sect. That may make it more difficult to bring Sunnis on side and convince them to fight the militants. "NO WAY BACK" The unlikely coalition of Kurdish peshmerga fighters, Shi'ite militias and the U.S. air force won a major victory when it broke a siege of the Shi’ite Turkman town of Amerli last week and drove Islamic State from 25 nearby Sunni towns and villages. But the aftermath is far from what the Americans envisioned. Smoke now rises from those Sunni villages, where some houses have been torched by Shi'ite militia. Others are abandoned, the walls daubed with sectarian slogans. “There is no way back for them: we will raze their homes to the ground,” said Abu Abdullah, a commander of the Shi’ite Kataib Hizbollah militia in Amerli. The area is now held by Kurdish peshmerga and Shi’ite militia, who have become the most powerful forces on the ground, rather than the Iraqi army, whose northern divisions collapsed this summer when Islamic State attacked. By the time IS was expelled from around Amerli, many Sunni civilians had fled, fearing for their lives. They have few places to go and are too frightened to return. "If a regular army were holding the area we could return, but as long as the militias are there we cannot,” said a 30-year-old displaced Sunni resident of one village near Amerli, who asked to remain unnamed. "They would slaughter us on the spot." He admitted some villagers had supported IS, but said it was only one or two for every 70 to 80 households, and that the rest were innocent civilians who were too scared to stand against the militants or had nowhere else to go. Sunni Turkman al-Muradli and his family left Suleiman Beg the day after it fell to Islamic State in June and moved to a Kurdish-controlled town nearby. A month later, their 21-year-old son was abducted. The next time they saw him was in a video on the internet captioned "arrest of an Islamic State member", which appears to show their son being beheaded by Shi'ite militia fighters. His weeping mother insisted he was an innocent student and said her son's killers had phoned her demanding $2,000 to return the corpse without a head, which the caller claimed to have taken to Baghdad as a trophy. "We cannot return. Even if the Shi'ite army and militia withdraw, Islamic State will come back and the same will happen all over again," said the mother. The mayor of Tuz Khurmato confirmed the account and said at least four other Sunnis had been abducted in the area in recent weeks, presumably by Shi'ite militia. At least one other video has circulated online of Shi'ite militiamen brandishing the heads of alleged Islamic State fighters. Pictures online, also allegedly from Amerli, show two militia fighters posing with a pair of charred corpses. A 42-year-old Shi'ite volunteer said it would eventually be safe for Sunnis to return and that no more than ten houses of known Islamic State members had been deliberately destroyed. "The Sunnis will come back to their villages but not now: after a few months," he said. "Since there is no confidence between Sunni and Shi’ite any more, they need guarantees from a third party, maybe the Kurds, then we can live peacefully together again, as we were." ETHNIC TENSIONS Sunni Arabs are also feeling a backlash in villages where they used to live alongside Kurds, who accuse them of collaborating with Islamic State. Kurds, who are also mostly Sunni but identify first and foremost with their ethnicity, have taken back at least 127 villages since the start of the U.S. air campaign, some of which were home to Arabs too. In one such village, returning Kurds have sprayed over the word "apostate" on the walls of houses and written "Kurdish home" instead. Arab households remain empty. Kurds in the Makhmour area, from which IS was pushed out in August, say they no longer trust Arabs enough to live with them. "All my neighbors were Arabs. Now most of them are with Islamic State," said Abdul Rahman Ahmed Abdullah, a member of the Kurdish security services from the village of Baqirta, south of Arbil. "We cannot be mixed together. The only solution is for them to leave." SOLIDARITY SHORT-LIVED During the operation to reach Amerli, Kurds gave passage to Shi'ite militia through territory they control and allowed them to use their bases, where they fired artillery at IS positions side by side in an unusual show of solidarity. "Amerli united Iraqis," said Taleb Jaafar Mohammed, a Shi'ite Turkman teacher, holding a pistol in one hand and a string of prayer beads in the other. But even during the operation, there were cracks in the coalition: Shi'ite militia and Kurdish forces fought under their own banners and the least visible flag was that of Iraq. Now that the common enemy has been pushed back, the alliance is unraveling. Kataib Hizbollah, which controls access to Amerli, is denying Kurds entry to the town and one peshmerga commander described the militia as the "Shi'ite IS". The tensions reflect a struggle for territory which the Shi'ite-led government in Baghdad claims, but the Kurds want as part of their autonomous region in the north of the country. "This land is ours: they are an occupying force," said Sirwan, a Kurdish fighter, when asked about the Shi'ite militia presence. "There will be bigger problems than Islamic State in this area." (Editing by Giles Elgood) =========== Islamic State shows captive British journalist in new video Thu, Sep 18 18:55 PM EDT By Alexander Dziadosz BEIRUT (Reuters) - Islamic State militants fighting in Iraq and Syria released a video on Thursday that they said shows British journalist John Cantlie in captivity saying he will soon reveal "facts" about the group to counter its portrayal in Western media. The Islamic State, which controls territory in Syria and Iraq, has already beheaded two American journalists and one British aid worker in recent weeks in what it said was reprisal for U.S. air strikes against it in Iraq. But in the new roughly three-minute video posted on social media sites, the man identified as Cantlie appears in good health and promises to "convey some facts" in a series of "programs," suggesting there would be further installments. "Now, I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, 'He's only doing this because he's a prisoner. He's got a gun at his head and he's being forced to do this.' Right?" the man in the video, wearing an orange shirt and closely-cropped hair, says. British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said he had heard reports of a video on social media and said authorities would look closely at any material released online. "These videos can be very distressing for the families of the individuals involved," he told reporters during a visit to Copenhagen. U.S. President Barack Obama has been trying to build an international coalition to destroy Islamic State, a Sunni Muslim extremist group which has exploited the chaos of Syria and Iraq to seize swathes of territory in both countries. The United States has already carried out scores of air strikes against the group in Iraq and Obama said in a policy speech he would not hesitate to strike it in Syria as well. In the new video, titled "Lend Me Your Ears, Messages from the British Detainee John Cantlie," the man identified as Cantlie says he was captured by the Islamic State after arriving in Syria in November 2012. He says he worked for newspapers and magazines in Britain including the Sunday Times, the Sun and the Sunday Telegraph.

"Well, it's true. I am a prisoner. That I cannot deny. But seeing as I've been abandoned by my government and my fate now lies in the hands of the Islamic State, I have nothing to lose." "After two disastrous and hugely unpopular wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, why is it that our governments appear so keen to get involved in yet another unwinnable conflict?" the man says in the video. "I'm going to show you the truth behind the systems and motivation of the Islamic State, and how the Western media, the very organization I used to work for, can twist and manipulate that truth for the public back home." Cantlie said other Western governments have negotiated for the release of their hostages but that the British and U.S. governments chose to do things differently. "I'll show you the truth behind what happened when many European citizens were imprisoned and later released by the Islamic State, and how the British and American governments thought they could do it differently to every other European country," the man in the video says. "They negotiated with the Islamic State and got their people home while the British and Americans were left behind," he says. "Maybe I will live and maybe I will die," the man identified as Cantlie says. "But I want to take this opportunity to convey some facts that you can verify. Facts that, if you contemplate, might help preserving lives.

PREVIOUS CAPTURE The United States resumed air strikes in Iraq in August for the first time since the withdrawal of the final U.S. troops from the country in 2011. The raids followed major gains by Islamic State fighters who have seized a third of both Iraq and Syria, declared war on the West and seek to establish a caliphate in the heart of the Middle East. The U.S. House of Representatives approved on Wednesday Obama's plan to train and arm moderate Syrian rebels in a message of support for his military campaign to "degrade and destroy" Islamic State Britain has delivered humanitarian aid, carried out surveillance, given weapons to Kurds and promised training in Iraq. On military action, Britain supports U.S. air strikes and British Prime Minister David Cameron has repeatedly said Britain has ruled nothing out except combat troops on the ground. Cantlie had previously been taken hostage in July, 2012 along with Dutch photographer Jeroen Oerlemans while working near the Syrian border with Turkey. They were released the same month after a group of "Free Syrian Army" fighters freed them. Cantlie told media after his release they were threatened with death unless they converted to Islam, and both were shot and slightly wounded when they attempted to escape. He was shot in the arm, Oerlemans in the leg. At the time, Cantlie wrote in the Sunday Times that the group of about 30 militants had been made up of different nationalities, many British and none Syrian, and that the British jihadists had treated him the most cruelly in captivity. On Saturday, Islamic State released a video showing the beheading of British aid worker David Haines. A black-clad man in the video said another hostage, identified as Alan Henning, would be killed if Cameron continued to support the fight against Islamic State. Thursday's video made no mention of Henning. (Additional reporting by Michael Holden,; editing by Samia Nakhoul and Dominic Evans) ====================

Maliki refuses to go as Iraqis turn to new leader

Iranian-Saudi agreement on Iraq may be near A UN diplomatic source in Beirut told Al-Monitor that an Iranian-Saudi agreement on the formation of the next Iraqi government was almost done. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, revealed that the visit by the Iranian Assistant Foreign Minister Hussein Amir Abdul Lahian to Saudi Arabia on Aug. 26 was the move that crowned the agreement. Summary⎙ Print While key issues remain, Iran and Saudi Arabia are reportedly close to agreeing on the formation of an Iraqi government, clearing the way to focus on another regional crisis. Author Jean Aziz Posted September 5, 2014 Translator(s)Rani Geha The source said that some felt a few weeks ago that removing Nouri al-Maliki from the Iraqi Prime Ministry and designating Haider al-Abadi on Aug.11 was the final sign of a Tehran-Riyadh agreement on Baghdad. But this impression was not true. According to the diplomatic source, the move followed mutual attempts by the two parties to raise their negotiating ceilings. For its part, Iran tried to harden its stance for known reasons; it gave the impression that removing Maliki happened more because of internal Iraqi Shiite calculations linked to the position of Shiite cleric Ali al-Husseini al-Sistani, rather than a Shiite concession to the Sunnis or an Iranian concession to Saudi Arabia in Iraq. These calculations include compensating Maliki’s removal by strengthening his and his team’s position in governing and in the next government, as well as getting paid by the Sunni-Saudi team as a compensation. In contrast, Riyadh also raised the ceiling of its demands after Maliki was replaced. It was as if Saudi officials saw Maliki’s fall as a sign of Iraqi Shiite weakness and of Iranian retreat in Baghdad. So the Saudis thought they could go further and get bigger gains. The UN diplomatic source in Beirut said that the negotiations between Tehran and Riyadh were stuck in tensions and one-upmanship for two weeks, before Lahian’s visit to Saudi Arabia moved the negotiations to the resolution stage. The source said that the information provided to him by those concerned in the file indicated that the initial agreement was based on two major changes: First, assigning the Iraqi Foreign Ministry to a Sunni figure, and second, giving Iraqi Sunnis a major security position in the Iraqi government. It should be noted that the same source wondered how the first item could be achieved, since it would require taking the ministry from the Kurds’ share and reassuring the Shiites about giving a key security post to the Sunnis, especially amid a political-security context that was not encouraging for those two matters. The Baghdad government has moved closer to the Kurdish authorities in Erbil to face the Islamic State (IS) in Mosul and northwestern Iraq; and, the establishment of IS in those areas has triggered concerns about Sunni security units and members, in terms of doubting their loyalty to the government in Baghdad. So, in light of the IS event, how can Baghdad take from the Kurds’ political share and give more to the Sunnis? According to the diplomatic source, these questions will soon be answered. The source has information that the new Iraqi government will be formed before Sept. 10, so the whole truth will be revealed in a few days. And according to the same information, if the Iranian-Saudi intersection is confirmed, then its next step will be the Yemeni file, because the explosive situation in Sanaa is clearly worrying the Saudis. Regarding other files — from Bahrain to Syria and Lebanon — they seem to be deferred to a later stage. Read more: http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/09/saudi-arabia-iran-agreement-iraq-government.html#ixzz3CgVD08O7 ======== Khamenei's representative to visit Najaf and says: Sistani optimistic about the stability of Iraq soon Sunday, 31 August / August 2014 20:59 [Follow-Where] The representative of Iranian Leader Ali Khamenei, after visiting the religious authority, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in the holy city of Najaf a few days ago that "Sistani optimistic that solves the security and stability in Iraq in the near future." The representative of Iranian leader Qurban Ali Dorri Najaf-Abadi had visited in on Wednesday and Thursday and met with al-Sistani Repertory. Abadi added in a press statement on Sunday that "Sistani was very satisfied with the participation of the Iraqi people in the face of extensive planning terrorist Daash and optimistic to bringing security and stability in Iraq in the near future." He pointed out that "the new Iraqi government began its activities based on cooperation and the protection of religious authority and the sons of the Iraqi society," adding that "the promotion of unity among the currents of religious minorities is the most important trend for the government to approve the security." The Iranian official stressed "the Iraqi people that the response to the appeal of the religious authority confirms the established faith of Islam, which will be recorded for the Iraqi people and the rapid decisive victory against terrorism." Abadi added, "that Sistani stressed that the Iraqi people will not budge in front of Daash terrorist clique, and God willing, and Baltae the Iraqi people's unity and solidarity BE cleanse Iraq of the presence of these hypocrites." The representative of the Iranian leader said, "Sistani praised the comprehensive support provided by the people and the government in the Islamic Republic of Iran to the Iraqi people in the face of terrorist Daash clique." The hundreds of thousands of volunteers in the central and southern governorates entered the ranks of the security forces in response to the call of jihad Ulkipaúa religious authority to protect the country from terrorist gangs Daash. The promise of supreme religious authority, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in his fatwa of jihad Ulkipaúa that all of the kills in defense of his country is a martyr, while stressing the need to exercise the highest degree of restraint and prevent armed manifestations outside the law, denying at the same time to be calling upon the basis of sectarian but for all Iraqis to defend their country and themselves. And locked the government battles against gangs Daash, which seized control in 10 of the last June and beyond the areas in Mosul, Salahuddin and Anbar, Diyala and Babel but succeeded security forces and popular mobilization to stop its advance to other areas, and these efforts decoding siege terrorists for hand Amerli Aleom.anthy ============= Suicide bomber kills 37 in western Iraq: police officers, medical official Sun, Aug 31 13:37 PM EDT BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Thirty seven people were killed when a suicide bomber rammed an explosives-packed Humvee military vehicle into a construction site, used by the army and police, according to two police officers and a medical official. The blast killed 22 security personnel and 15 civilians, the medical and police sources said. The nine-story building under construction, used as a base by security personnel, was located in the center of Ramadi in western Anbar province. Ramadi and its sister city Falluja have been plagued by fighting between the security forces and the extremist Islamic State and other armed groups since January. (Reporting By Ahmed Rasheed, Writing by Ned Parker) ============================= Jubilant Iraqi forces break two-month siege of Amerli: officials Sun, Aug 31 15:51 PM EDT image 1 of 6 By Ahmed Rasheed and Isabel Coles BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi security forces backed by Shi'ite militias on Sunday broke the two-month siege of Amerli by Islamic State militants and entered the northern town, officials said. The mayor of Amerli and army officers said troops backed by militias defeated fighters from the Islamic State (IS) to the east of the town. Fighting continued to the north of Amerli in several villages. "Security forces and militia fighters are inside Amerli now after breaking the siege and that will definitely relieve the suffering of residents," said Adel al-Bayati, mayor of Amerli. It was hailed as a huge strategic victory for the Iraqi security forces and the militia fighters who joined them after a summer that saw the Islamic State lead other Sunni armed groups in seizing almost one-third of the country's territory. "Amerli's battle is a golden victory registered by the Iraqi security forces who are still fighting the terrorist groups in north and south areas of Amerli," said military spokesman Qassim al-Attta. Atta described Amerli as a launching pad to retake the northern province of Salahuddin, including its capital, which was captured by IS in June. "The next step will be holding the ground tightly and liberating all the areas which link Amerli to Salahuddin," Atta said on state television. "Our forces will gather in thousands in Amerli to march towards Tikrit." While Kurdish fighters, backed by US air strikes, had beat back the Islamic State after losing terrain in August, the collection of Shi'ite security forces and militias had yet to score a significant military win. The advance of the Iraqi forces in Amerli comes after the U.S. military carried out air strikes overnight on IS militant positions near the town and airdropped humanitarian supplies to the trapped residents there. More aid was dropped from British, French and Australian planes. The Pentagon said the warplanes hit three Humvee patrol vehicles, a tank and an armed vehicle held by militants in addition to a checkpoint controlled by the group, according to the military's Central Command, which runs U.S. operations in the Middle East. U.S. ROLE CRITICAL One Kurdish fighter on a base north of Amerli described the American role as critical in ending the siege. "It would have been absolutely impossible without the American planes," the Kurdish peshmerga fighter said. "The strikes prevented the Islamic State from moving freely and targeted them with 100 percent accuracy." Residents of Amerli expressed relief. "I can see the tanks of the Iraqi army patrolling Amerli's streets now. I'm very happy we got rid of the Islamic State terrorists who were threatening to slaughter us," said Amir Ismael, an Amerli resident, by phone. Armed residents had managed to fend off attacks by IS fighters, who encircled the town and regarded its majority Shi'ite Turkmen population as apostates. More than 15,000 people had remained trapped inside Amerli. North of Amerli, Shiite militia and Kurdish peshmerga fighters were deployed. The armed men were a reminder of how militia fighters have gained in popularity since the beginning of June when IS launched its blitz across northern Iraq. "Our goal is all the same to fight IS and repel terrorism," said a fighter from the Peace Brigades, an offshoot of cleric Muqtada Sadr's Mahdi Army militia. The mobilization of Shi'ite militias to take Amerli had created a fluid situation where the armed groups who once fought the American military were benefit ting from U.S. air strikes. One Shi'ite fighter, who declined to give the name of his group, said all Shi'ite militia groups were present, including Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Kataib Hezbollah and Sadr's Peace Brigades. "Everyone is here," the fighter said speaking on condition of anonymity. "We came to break the siege of Amerli. We came out of humanity. When the siege of Amerli is broken we will go back to our normal lives." Fighting raged elsewhere in Iraq. In the western city of Ramadi, where Iraqi forces have been battling Sunni groups dominated by IS since January, a suicide bomber detonated an explosives-packed Humvee military vehicle, according to two police officers and a medical official. The blast, targeting an unfinished nine-floor building, killed 22 security personnel and 15 civilians, the medical and police officials said. The building, used by security personnel, was in the centre of Ramadi in western Anbar province. (Reporting by Isabel Coles and Ahmed Rasheed; Editing by Ned Parker and Stephen Powell) ===================================== Maliki refuses to go as Iraqis turn to new leader By Alexander Dziadosz and Raheem Salman BAGHDAD Wed Aug 13, 2014 9:17am EDT 2 Comments in Share . Share this Email Print Iraqis carry portraits of incumbent Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki as they gather in support of him in Baghdad August 13, 2014. Maliki said on Wednesday the appointment of Haider al-Abadi to replace him as prime minister was a 'violation' of the constitution and 'had no value'. REUTERS-Ahmed Saad Iraqis carry a portrait of Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki as they march in support of him in Baghdad, August 11, 2014. REUTERS-Ahmed Saad 1 of 2. Iraqis carry portraits of incumbent Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki as they gather in support of him in Baghdad August 13, 2014. Maliki said on Wednesday the appointment of Haider al-Abadi to replace him as prime minister was a 'violation' of the constitution and 'had no value'. Credit: Reuters/Ahmed Saad Related News Car bomb in eastern Baghdad kills at least 10: police, medical sources Related Topics World » Iraq » (Reuters) - Nuri al-Maliki stuck to his guns and refused to accept his removal as Iraq's prime minister on Wednesday, but his hold on power was tenuous as Iran's supreme leader, a long-time Maliki ally, publicly backed his replacement. Taking to state television as acting premier, Maliki said the supreme court must rule on this week's move to ask his Shi'ite Islamist party colleague Haider al-Abadi to form a new government - a change that Iran, the United States and many Iraqis see as vital to halt the advance of Sunni militants. But while the loyalty of at least some Shi'ite militia and government forces remains uncertain, there were further signs that Maliki, blamed for alienating the Sunni minority during his eight years in power, is isolated, even among fellow Shi'ites. U.S. President Barack Obama - whose European allies followed his lead on Wednesday to arm Kurdish forces that have taken the recent brunt of fighting with the Sunni Islamic State - has already offered Abadi its endorsement. Washington lost patience with Maliki, who rose from obscurity during the U.S. occupation. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, bound to Tehran's U.S. adversary by a common interest in curbing the rise of Sunni jihadists in Syria and Iraq, offered his personal endorsement to Abadi. He very publicly distanced himself in the process from Maliki, who has looked for support from Iran, where he spent years in exile opposing Sunni dictator Saddam Hussein. "I hope the designation of the new prime minister in Iraq will untie the knot and lead to the establishment of a new government and teach a good lesson to those who aim for sedition in Iraq," Khamenei said in a statement on his website. Iranian media carried reports that Khamenei sent an envoy last month to take part in discussions with Iraqi Shi'ite political and religious leaders to find an alternative to Maliki, who had held on since a parliamentary election in April despite being blamed by many for fuelling sectarian hatreds. Those leaders, including Iraq's reclusive top cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, last week rallied around Abadi, who long ran a British engineering company, as a compromise figure who could bring moderate Sunnis into power to cooperate on holding off the militant offensive in the north. LEGAL ACTION Maliki has complained to the Federal Court that, as leader of the largest bloc in the new parliament, he must by right be given the first chance to form a new government. The appointment by President Fouad Masoum of Abadi as prime minister-designate on Monday was therefore a breach of the constitution, he said. "The violation that occurred has no value, and its consequences have no effect," Maliki said on television. "This government is continuing, and will not be changed except after the Federal Court issues its decision." In theory, Maliki should continue as acting premier, with limited powers, until a new government is sworn in. He has had the personal loyalty of senior commanders of the police and armed forces as well as irregular Shi'ite militia units. It is unclear he would try to resist his removal by force, however. On Tuesday, he urged commanders to keep out of politics. With ethnic Kurdish Peshmerga forces pushed back on the defensive by the Islamic State this month, France announced it was joining the United States in urgently supplying arms to the autonomous regional force, and EU officials said European Union foreign ministers could meet on Friday to discuss the crisis. In addition to arming the Peshmerga and, in the case of Washington, bombing militant positions, Western powers have been trying to help aid agencies drop supplies and provide refuge for tens of thousands of people, many of them from non-Sunni communities, who have fled attacks by the Islamic State. The militant group, which already controlled large parts of Syria and has announced a religious caliphate straddling the desert border, took advantage of political paralysis in Baghdad following April's election to seize huge swathes of territory. That has been accompanied by an increase in sectarian violence elsewhere. In the city of Baquba, northeast of Baghdad, five Sunnis were killed on Wednesday when Shi’ite gunmen stormed a mosque and shot them as they prayed, security sources said. (Additional reporting by Michael Georgy in Baghdad and Mehrdad Balali in Dubai; Writing by Alastair Macdonald; Editing by Will Waterman)

ISIS jihadists demolish mosques, shrines in northern Iraq

The people of Amerli near Tuz Khurmato have been under siege by ISIS for over 3 weeks now, still holding out but in desperate need of help Shia militias have joined forces with Iraqi government troops to recapture the town of Balad, north of Baghdad http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-28322645

Sheikh 'Ata Bin Khalil Abu Rashta ‪#‎The‬ Khilafah is NOT merely a name. The Khilafah is a state of significance, and the Shariah has stipulated the methodology for it's establishment and the manner for it's Ahkam(rulings) extraction for ruling, politics, economics and international relations...and it is not a mere announcement in name only that is broadcasted on websites or printed. visual or audio media outlets. Rather it will be a great event that will shake the entire world, and it's roots will be stable in the ground, its authority will maintain security internally and externally on that land, and will implment Islam within it and will carry Islam to the world through Dawah and Jihad... Original Arabic Source: https://www.facebook.com/Ata.abualrashtah/photos/a.154439224724163.1073741827.154433208058098/310905275744223/?type=1&relevant_count=1 Sheikh 'Ata Bin Khalil Abu Rashta ‪#‎Khilafah‬: Where are the components, authority, security and protection? The organisation that has announced the Caliphate has neither auhority, in either Syria or Iraq, nor did it achieve security and protection internally or externally, even more they have given allegiance (bayah) to a Khaleefah who is unable to declare himself even publicly rather his situation has remained hidden like the situation prior to the declaration of the State! And this is contradictory to what the Messenger of ALlah SAW did. Peace and Blessings upon him was permitted to hide in the Thawr Cave before the state, but after the state, he took care of affairs, led the armies, judged in disputes and sent envoys and received them publicly; thus the situation differed before and after the state... Thus the announcement by the organisation of the Khilafah is mere rhetoric without any weight, it is similar to those who announced the Khilafah previously, without authenticity on the ground or components, rather to satisfy something within themselves, so there was some who declared themselves as a Khaleefah and others who declared themselves as a Mahdi, and so on... without having the components, authority, security or protection...! Original Arabic Source: https://www.facebook.com/Ata.abualrashtah/photos/a.154439224724163.1073741827.154433208058098/310647612436656/?type=1&relevant_count=1 Sheikh 'Ata Bin Khalil Abu Rashta The ‪#‎Khilafah‬ must have obvious authority. Any organisation that seeks to announce the Khilafah in an area is obliged to follow the Methodology of the Prophet SAW in it, and from it is that this organisation should have the obvious visible authority on the place, where it can maintain security internally and externally, and that this area should have the components of a state in the area where the Khilafah is announced....This is what the Prophet SAW performed when he established the Islamic State in Medina Al-Munawarra: the authority was with the Prophet SAW and the internal and external security was with the authority of Islam and it had the components of a state in the surrounding area. Arabic original source: https://www.facebook.com/Ata.abualrashtah/photos/a.154439224724163.1073741827.154433208058098/310423319125752/?type=1&relevant_count=1 Sheikh 'Ata Bin Khalil Abu Rashta O People of ‪#‎Mesopotamia‬ (‪#‎Iraq‬)… “Leave it, its rotten” ------------------------------ O people of Mesopotamia this matter will not be reformed except with a remedy from the start: ruling by what Allah has revealed, and jihad in the name of Allah ... holding fast to the rope of Allah and breaking the bond with the enemies of Allah... and the rejection of sectarianism and madh’habism«دَعُوهَا فَإِنَّهَا مُنْتِنَةٌ»“Leave it, its rotten”,Bukhari narrated from Jabir... Quit the titles of sectarianism and madh’habism, and hold on to the name that Allah named us (هُوَ سَمَّاكُمُ الْمُسْلِمِينَ) “Allah named you ‘Muslims’”]Al-Hajj: 78[.So return to Him and establish His state, the rightly guided Khilafah, by it you will be glorified, and by it you will address the clouds once again, and by it you will return servants of Allah as one brotherhood… (إِنَّ فِي ذَلِكَ لَذِكْرَى لِمَنْ كَانَ لَهُ قَلْبٌ أَوْ أَلْقَى السَّمْعَ وَهُوَ شَهِيدٌ )“Indeed in that is a reminder for whoever has a heart or who listens while he is present [in mind].”[ Qaf: 37 ] النسخة العربية https://www.facebook.com/Ata.abualrashtah/photos/pb.154433208058098.-2207520000.1404912457./309683972533020/?type=1 Sheikh 'Ata Bin Khalil Abu Rashta O People of ‪#‎Iraq‬… Do not incline towards America and Europe ---------------------------------- The guide does not lie to his people, and Hizb ut Tahrir is a sincere advisor to you, so do not incline towards America and Europe, they will not give you any weight, but they are serious in inflicting you with fatal wounds ... so that they create three entities in Iraq that are connected together by a worn-out bond in a nominal state as a prelude to cut this bond in the later stages... We are able to understand the direction of the poisoned arrows of America and the West at us ... But for the people of Iraq to accept that, and even struggling to achieve it, and all of them seeking the help of America in that, then this is a widespread evil. (وَلَا تَرْكَنُوا إِلَى الَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا فَتَمَسَّكُمُ النَّارُ وَمَا لَكُمْ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ مِنْ أَوْلِيَاءَ ثُمَّ لَا تُنْصَرُونَ)“And do not incline toward those who do wrong, lest you be touched by the Fire, and you would not have other than Allah any protectors; then you would not be helped.” [Hud: 113].You are one Ummah that is prohibited from being fragmented. (وَاعْتَصِمُوا بِحَبْلِ اللَّهِ جَمِيعًا وَلَا تَفَرَّقُوا)“And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided.” [Al-i-Imran: 103]. And you are prohibited to dispute, otherwise your strength would collapse and your enemy will become greedy with you. (وَلَا تَنَازَعُوا فَتَفْشَلُوا وَتَذْهَبَ رِيحُكُمْ)“... and do not dispute and [thus] lose courage and [then] your strength would depart...” [Al-Anfal: 46]. ******* النسخة العربية https://www.facebook.com/Ata.abualrashtah/photos/a.154439224724163.1073741827.154433208058098/309322372569180/?type=1&relevant_count=1 Sheikh 'Ata Bin Khalil Abu Rashta ‪#‎Iraq‬: ‪#‎Islam‬ has unified you but you seek diaspora?! ------------------------ Islam has unified you for centuries, and its Banner has shaded you for a long period of time, so you were strong and dignified. You shared the Good together, and you fought the Evil together... Your country is the land of tournaments; the land of al-Qadisiyah, the land of al-Buwaib the Persian Yarmouk, the country of Haroon al-Rashid and al-Mu’tassim, the country of Salah al-Din, the country of the conquerors, the former and the subsequent Allah willing. The undivided Iraq is strong by its people, and the torn Iraq is weak by its rips... If the Kurds assume that the presence of a Kurdistan region or a state of Kurdistan will bring them dignity, it would not exceed a short period, but will lead to their death after a while... And if the Sunnis assume that the existence of a territory that belongs to them in the Northern and Western Iraq will bring them a decent living, it would not exceed a worthwhile period, and then misery and hardship will inflict afterwards... If the Shiites assume that the presence of the territory that belongs to them in the South will bring them the power of tyranny it would only be for a short time, and then matters shall return to weakness and humiliation. النسخة العربية https://www.facebook.com/Ata.abualrashtah/photos/a.154439224724163.1073741827.154433208058098/309017185933032/?type=1&relevant_count=1 Sheikh 'Ata Bin Khalil Abu Rashta ‪#‎Iraq‬: O Muslims... O Arabs... O Kurds... O Sunnis... O Shiites... O People of ‪#‎Mesopotamia‬... Your blood has been shed, your wealth looted and your homes, rather your Mosques destroyed, and Iraq has become a failed fragile state that does not block a meddling hand... Is there not among you a man of reason to reflect on what happened? Do not you see that America and their alliances, agents and followers ... All exasperate the sedition (fitneh), so it boils then trickles down into three branches, three rips, three territories: Kurds, Sunnis and Shiites, that are not gathered by any relation except by a thin thread or much less...! Is not it so? Do you not wonder how America has protected the Kurdistan region? And how Bremer implanted in its constitution the seeds of the ‘madh’habism’ (school of thought) and sectarian-based system? Do not you wonder how America created in the current government a tyrant in power who infuses the sectarian strife without modesty or shame? Do not you wonder how America is watching the situation and feeding it for the Kurds to diverge from the Arabs, and the Sunnis to diverge from the Shiites? Do not you wonder how America meets with Britain, the agents and the followers, and everyone is marching in the direction of feeding into this sedition (fitneh), this with the knowledge that the interests of America and Britain are different, but they meet on tearing Muslims lands?! النسخة العربية https://www.facebook.com/Ata.abualrashtah/photos/a.154439224724163.1073741827.154433208058098 Sheikh 'Ata Bin Khalil Abu Rashta ‪#‎Iraq‬ and its Divisions! Whoever reflects on the current events sees them as an episode in a series of episodes that were not only initiated by America with its occupation of Iraq, but also before the occupation, since America imposed no-fly zones in North of Iraq in 1991, where Kurdistan became a quasi-state region! And when America occupied Iraq in 2003, the American governor of Iraq, Bremer set a constitution carrying the seed of dismantling Iraq that made him utter with confessional and sectarian-based quota system. The seed continued to grow until the month of 12/2011, when America exited Iraq with its military appearance but remained in it with its security and political reality, wherein the tree of sedition blossomed. Then America fueled it placing an intolerant sectarian tyrant at the head of the government in Iraq. So Maliki deliberately crushed the areas of Northern and Western Iraq, and tyrannized and oppressed in unprecedented brutality, whenever it receded, he ignited again with provocative acts and sayings to aggravate those areas ... And the sectarian incitement escalated with the creation of the Shiite armed militias, and in return focusing on ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Levant) as being Sunni terrorism, although the movements that have entered Mosul and Tikrit and the others were from several movements, including ISIS... And the matter did not stop at this point, but the neighboring countries raced in highlighting sectarianism... all in the implementation of US policy, and marching behind it Britain, then the agents and the followers who do not want Iraq to be a unified entity, but want it to be a fragmented feuding divergent entity, killing each other! And each party clings stubbornly to have a territory, and the calls for provinces and divisions became publicly proclaimed... And because events occur without concealment, the Kurdistan region realized the reality of the situation, and therefore at a time the rebels controlled Mosul, the Peshmerga forces of the Kurdistan region came to fully control Kirkuk and the surrounding areas. Reuters quoted on 15/06/2014 Fuad Hussein, Barzani's chief of staff, as saying: "Iraq has entered a new phase that is completely different than before control of Mosul and that the Kurds will discuss how to deal with this new Iraq." النسخة العربية https://www.facebook.com/Ata.abualrashtah/photos/a.154439224724163.1073741827.154433208058098/308043542697063/?type=1&relevant_count=1 Sheikh 'Ata Bin Khalil Abu Rashta ‪#‎Iraq‬ and its Divisions! Whoever reflects on the current events sees them as an episode in a series of episodes that were not only initiated by America with its occupation of Iraq, but also before the occupation, since America imposed no-fly zones in North of Iraq in 1991, where Kurdistan became a quasi-state region! And when America occupied Iraq in 2003, the American governor of Iraq, Bremer set a constitution carrying the seed of dismantling Iraq that made him utter with confessional and sectarian-based quota system. The seed continued to grow until the month of 12/2011, when America exited Iraq with its military appearance but remained in it with its security and political reality, wherein the tree of sedition blossomed. Then America fueled it placing an intolerant sectarian tyrant at the head of the government in Iraq. So Maliki deliberately crushed the areas of Northern and Western Iraq, and tyrannized and oppressed in unprecedented brutality, whenever it receded, he ignited again with provocative acts and sayings to aggravate those areas ... And the sectarian incitement escalated with the creation of the Shiite armed militias, and in return focusing on ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Levant) as being Sunni terrorism, although the movements that have entered Mosul and Tikrit and the others were from several movements, including ISIS... And the matter did not stop at this point, but the neighboring countries raced in highlighting sectarianism... all in the implementation of US policy, and marching behind it Britain, then the agents and the followers who do not want Iraq to be a unified entity, but want it to be a fragmented feuding divergent entity, killing each other! And each party clings stubbornly to have a territory, and the calls for provinces and divisions became publicly proclaimed... And because events occur without concealment, the Kurdistan region realized the reality of the situation, and therefore at a time the rebels controlled Mosul, the Peshmerga forces of the Kurdistan region came to fully control Kirkuk and the surrounding areas. Reuters quoted on 15/06/2014 Fuad Hussein, Barzani's chief of staff, as saying: "Iraq has entered a new phase that is completely different than before control of Mosul and that the Kurds will discuss how to deal with this new Iraq." النسخة العربية https://www.facebook.com/Ata.abualrashtah/photos/a.154439224724163.1073741827.154433208058098/308043542697063/?type=1&relevant_count=1 Sheikh 'Ata Bin Khalil Abu Rashta Regarding what has been Declared by ‪#‎ISIS‬ about the Establishment of the ‪#‎Khilafah‬ (Translated) To all the brothers and sisters who sent inquiries about the declaration of the organization’s establishment of the Khilafah State... and my apologies for not writing your names, they are too long to list… Assalamu alaikum wa Rahmatullah wa Barakatahu, We have previously duly sent an answer and I reiterate: (Dear Brothers and sisters, 1. Any organization that seeks to announce the Khilafah in an area is obligated to follow the Methodology of the Prophet (saw) in it, and from it is that this organization should have the obvious visible authority on the place, where it can maintain security internally and externally, and that this area should have the components of a state in the area where the Khilafah is announced…. This is what the Prophet (saw) performed when he established the Islamic State in Madina Al-Munawarra: the authority was with the Prophet (saw) and the internal and external security was with the authority of Islam and it had the components of a state in the surrounding area. 2. The organization that has announced the Caliphate has neither authority, in either Syria or Iraq, nor did it achieve security and protection internally or externally, even more they have given allegiance (bayah) to a Khaleefah who is unable to declare himself even publicly rather his situation has remained hidden like the situation prior to the declaration of the State! And this is contradictory to what the Messenger of Allah (saw) did. Peace and Blessings upon him was permitted to hide in the Thawr Cave before the state, but after the state, he took care of affairs, led the armies, judged in disputes and sent envoys and received them publicly; thus the situation differed before and after the state… Thus the announcement by the organization of the Khilafah is mere rhetoric without any weight, it is similar to those who announced the Khilafah previously, without authenticity on the ground or components, rather to satisfy something within themselves, so there were some who declared themselves as a Khaleefah and others who declared themselves as a Mahdi, and so on ….without having the components, authority, security or protection! 3. The Khilafah is a state of significance, and the Shariah has stipulated the methodology for its establishment and the manner for its Ahkam (rulings) extraction for ruling, politics, economics and international relations….and it is not be a mere announcement in name only that is broadcasted on websites or printed, visual or audio media outlets. Rather it will be a great event that will shake the entire world, and its roots will be stable in the ground, its authority will maintain security internally and externally on that land, and will implement Islam within it and will carry Islam to the world through Dawah and Jihad. 4. The announcement which occurred was mere rhetoric, which will not increase or decrease in the reality of the state structure. The organization is an armed movement before the announcement and after the announcement. Its circumstance is like other armed movements who fight with others and with the regimes, without any of them being able to attain any authority in Syria or in Iraq or both of them. Had any of these factions, including ISIS, actually been able to establish its authority in an appropriate area, with the components of a state, and subsequently announced the establishment of a Khilafah and it implemented Islam, then it would have been deserving of study to see if the Khilafah actually was established according to the Shariah rules, and then it would have been followed, and that is because the establishment of the Khilafah is a Fard upon all the Muslims and not just on Hizb ut Tahrir, so whoever rightfully establishes it will be followed... However the matter is not like this, rather all the armed movements are militias, which includes ISIS, have neither the elements of state or authority on the ground nor security and protection. Therefore, the announcement by ISIS of the establishment of a Khilafah is mere rhetoric, which is undeserving even of observation as to its reality, since it is visible… 5. However, what is deserving of study and observation are the negative impact of this announcement, regarding the idea of Khilafah among the ordinary people; since the notion of the Khilafah shatters from its mighty position and its great significance for the Muslims. It will plunge from that to a feeble idea, as simply a way of venting frustration by some individuals, so one of them will stand in an open square or in a village and announce that he is the Khaleefah and then he will relegate assuming that what he has done is good! It will lose the importance and greatness of the Khilafah will erode in the hearts of these ordinary people; and it will become no more than a beautiful word, uttered but devoid of any substance…This is what requires observation and especially at this time as the establishment of the Khilafah draws closer than ever before and the Muslims are waiting for it eagerly, and they are seeing Hizb ut Tahrir progressing in the path of the Prophet (saw) in how he established the state in Madina al Munawarra... and they see the live and meaningful interaction, between the Hizb and the Ummah that embraces it. Therefore the Muslims realize from this interaction the meaning of the brotherhood in Islam and they will rejoice with the success of the Hizb in establishing the Khilafah and the wellness in care-taking of affairs and that this would be a genuine Khilafah on the methodology of the Prophethood… At this time this announcement came, it gave an obscure picture if not distorted on the actual reality of the Khilafah in the minds of ordinary people… 6. All of this raises a question, rather several questions ….about the timing of this announcement when the people who made the announcement have no authority, through which they maintain security and protection internally and externally. In fact they only announced simply on Facebook and the media… such timing is dubious, and especially since these armed groups are not established on an ideological structuring allowing for easy penetration and the entry of the evil ones from the East and West, and it is known that the West and East plot against Islam and the Khilafah, and it matters that they distort its image, because they haven’t been able to obliterate its name. They are vigilant that the Khilafah remains merely a name without any weight. Whereas the mighty occurrence that will stun the Kuffar becomes merely a joke for the enemies. 7. Despite the actions of the evil ones, we declare to the enemies of Islam in the East and West and their agents and their ignorant followers that the Khilafah which had led the world for centuries is well-known and not unknown, impregnable in spite of plot and conspiracy. ﴿وَيَمْكُرُونَ وَيَمْكُرُ اللَّهُ وَاللَّهُ خَيْرُ الْمَاكِرِينَ﴾ “They plot and plan, and Allah too plans; but Allah is the best of planners.” [Surah Al-Anfaal 8:30] Allah the All Powerful the Victorious has guided a party for the Khilafah, that includes men for whom neither trade nor sale can divert from the remembrance of Allah, they embrace the Khilafah with their hearts, hearing and sight, they prepare for it with what is needed, and extracted its ruling (ahkam) and its constitution from the source of Islam, including its structure in the governance and administration. They marched to establish it by following exactly the methodology of the Messenger of Allah (saw)... They are, by the Permission of Allah, the shield that resists any distortion, they are the rock upon which the conspiracies of the Kuffar and their agents and followers are shattered by, by the strength of Allah, they are the aware politicians who by the strength of Allah (swt) resist the plot of the enemies of Islam and Muslims and turned it back on its head, ﴾ ﴿وَلَا يَحِيقُ الْمَكْرُ السَّيِّئُ إِلَّا بِأَهْلِهِ “But the evil plot does not besiege except its own authors.” [Surah Faatir 35:43] O My Dear Brothers and Sisters The matter of the Islamic Khilafah is great and its matter enormous, and its establishment will not be mere news in the fraudulent media, rather by the will of Allah (swt) it will be an earthquake that will shake the international order and it will change the face and direction of history… And the Khilafah will return on the methodology of Prophethood as was foretold by the Prophet (saw) and those who will establish it will be like the ones who established the first righteous Khilafah, pure and pious, the Ummah will love them and they will love the Ummah, and they will pray for it and the Ummah will for them, and they will be happy to meet the Ummah and it will be happy to meet them, not that it will hate their presence within it…. This is how the people of the coming Khilafah on the methodology of the Prophethood will be. Allah (swt) will give it to those who are worthy of it, and we make Duaa to Allah that we be from its people, and we make Dua to Allah to enable us to establish it, فَاسْتَبْشِرُوا بِبَيْعِكُمُ الَّذِي بَايَعْتُمْ بِهِ﴾ ﴿ “Then rejoice in the bargain which you have concluded” [Surah At-Tawba 9: 111] Do not despair from Allah, Allah will neither waste any efforts that you made, nor reject that the Duaa that you make to him, nor dash the hope that you reposed in Him. Therefore, help us through more effort thus proving to Allah your goodness, so He will increase you with goodness, and do not allow mere rhetoric to slow down your serious work. Wassalam Alaikum Wa Rahmatullah Wa Barakatahu Third of Ramadan 1435 AH 01/07/2014 CE Your Brother) End of the answer which I sent earlier. I pray that this answer is sufficient, May Allah grant you success and help you, and May Allah guide us to the righteous matter. Your Brother, Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah 04 Ramadan 1435 AH 02/07/2014 CE

Who is Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi? Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the terrorist group ISIL (file photo) Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the terrorist group ISIL (file photo) Mon Jul 14, 2014 3:28AM GMT By Kevin Barrett Related Interviews: 'US must be held accountable over ISIL' 'Iraq moving to form unity govt.' The largely unknown leader of the Takfiri terrorist group ISIL has declared himself “caliph” of Islam and rightful ruler of the world’s nearly two billion Muslims. Al-Baghdadi’s declaration was met with a barrage of ridicule. Observers pointed out that al-Baghdadi declared himself Caliph while wearing a Rolex wristwatch – a symbol of enslavement to Western materialist consumer culture. Muslim scholarly authorities – even those deluded enough to support the “Syrian rebels” – have unanimously repudiated Baghdadi’s bogus caliphate. Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the best-known pro-Syrian-rebels TV scholar, dismissively rejected Baghdadi’s claim. Rachid Ghannouchi, the leader of Tunisia’s Al-Nahda Party, called Baghdadi’s self-promotion “reckless,” “deceptive,” and “ridiculous.” The most important group working to restore the caliphate, Hizb-ut-Tahrir, said Baghdadi’s proclamation distorted the reality of what a caliphate is supposed to be. Even Assem Barqawi, the spokesperson for the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front – an erstwhile ally of ISIL in the Syrian war – spurned al-Baghdadi’s claim, and ripped ISIL for its brutality. In short, al-Baghdadi and ISIL have no support whatsoever among Muslims. They are loathed even by their fellow ultra-Salafis, Wahhabis and Takfiris. Yet the self-proclaimed “caliph” and his roughly 2000 ISIL followers have been relentlessly promoted by the Zionist-dominated Western media and terror-industry think tanks. For example, terror expert William McCants of the Brookings Institution told the New York Times: “ISIS is now officially the biggest and baddest global jihadi group on the planet… Nothing says ‘hard-core’ like being cast out by Al Qaeda.” A naive, angry young Muslim who saw this in the New York Times might get the idea that ISIL is cool. That’s exactly what the Zionist New York Times and the Zionist Brookings Institution want. Zionist propagandist Sheldon Filger – who treasonously shilled for Israeli citizen Stanley Fischer’s appointment as head of the American Federal Reserve – is also shilling for al-Baghdadi. Filger writes: “The lessons of history itself should compel us to take Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's promise to wage a ferocious worldwide war of vengeance against those he sees as the enemies of God with the utmost seriousness. His sermon in Mosul may very well mark the opening shots of the Third World War...” Worse yet, al-Baghdadi and ISIL are not just being hyped – they are also being armed, trained, and dressed in identical black Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles uniforms. The money is coming from US taxpayers, CIA drug-money slush funds, and CIA-asset Persian Gulf oil sheikhs. Why are the CIA and the Zionists supporting ISIL and promoting al-Baghdadi’s fake caliphate? And why does Israel provide support and medical treatment to ISIL terrorists in Syria? This paradoxical situation – a self-proclaimed “caliph of Islam” who has no support among Muslims, but massive support from Zionists and imperialists – points to an ineluctable conclusion: ISIL is a manufactured fake-opposition group. So who manufactured ISIL – and how? Circumstantial evidence suggests that al-Baghdadi may have been mind-controlled while held prisoner by the US military in Iraq. The American and Zionist authorities are scrambling to hide the fact that al-Baghdadi spent more than five years in US custody. Why would they engage in such a cover-up unless they had something big to hide? Wikipedia, a tool of the Zionist wing of the CIA, is peddling the following falsehood: “According to US Department of Defense records, al-Baghdadi was held at Camp Bucca as a ‘civilian internee’ by US Forces-Iraq from early February 2004 until early December 2004, when he was released. A Combined Review and Release Board recommended an ‘unconditional release’ of al-Baghdadi and there is no record of him being held at any other time.” This may not be an outright lie. There may indeed be “no record” of the fact that al-Baghdadi was held and treated by a secret CIA mind-control unit at Camp Bucca from 2004 until 2009. The records of such a “fabricate a fake ‘radical Muslim’ leader through mind control” operation would undoubtedly be destroyed or concealed behind a high-level National Security classification. But is such a thing really possible? Sadly, yes. CIA mind control technology has made tremendous strides since it began in the 1950s with the lavishly-funded MK Ultra program. MK Ultra was closed around 1960 because it had achieved its objective: Power over the human mind such that a brainwashed “Manchurian candidate” assassin could be created. That is, an ordinary human being, after CIA treatment, could be made to kill someone – anyone – without the slightest conscious awareness of his actions. The most notorious “Manchurian candidate” is Sirhan Sirhan, the mind-control slave who was set up as a patsy in the CIA’s murder of Robert F. Kennedy in 1968. The CIA also has a track record of creating cults – and their charismatic leaders. The Reverend Jim Jones, an anti-establishment clergyman, was turned by CIA mind-control into a fire-breathing, charismatic puppet-master, who convinced hundreds of people to join him in a mass suicide. Ironically, the puppet-master was himself a CIA puppet; the mass suicide was a CIA experiment designed to discover whether a large group of political dissidents could be so totally controlled that they would kill themselves on command. This experiment, like the murder of RFK, was a success. More recently, the CIA has been conducting Nazi-style mind-control experiments on Muslim inmates in Guantanamo and other terror prisons. Jon Ronson – a mainstream journalist and bestselling author who generally keeps his humorous distance from “conspiracy theories” – discovered in 2003 that Guantanamo inmate Jamal al-Harith and others had been subjected to torture and “silent sound” mind-control experiments while in US custody. In her book The Shock Doctrine, Naomi Klein shows that CIA torture is not designed to elicit information. Its real purpose is to “break” the subject so he or she can be mind-controlled. Douglas Rushkoff’s book Coercion explains how CIA mind control works: The subject is “broken,” then the CIA interrogator presents himself as a substitute parent figure and seizes total control of the subject’s mind. That is how Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who was waterboarded 183 times in a single month, was convinced by his mind-control torturers that he was involved in the 9/11 attacks. The secrecy surrounding al-Baghdadi’s five years in US custody strongly suggests that the self-proclaimed “caliph of Islam” is actually a Muslim version of Jim Jones. His “Islamic State” is a Muslim Jonestown. It is designed to mass-suicide Islam by turning Muslims against each other. Fortunately, the world’s Muslims are not drinking the kool aid. KB/HJL Dr. Kevin Barrett, a Ph.D. Arabist-Islamologist, is one of America's best-known critics of the War on Terror. Dr. Barrett has appeared many times on Fox, CNN, PBS and other broadcast outlets, and has inspired feature stories and op-eds in the New York Times, the Christian Science Monitor, the Chicago Tribune, and other leading publications. Dr. Barrett has taught at colleges and universities in San Francisco, Paris, and Wisconsin, where he ran for Congress in 2008. He is the co-founder of the Muslim-Christian-Jewish Alliance, and author of the books Truth Jihad: My Epic Struggle Against the 9/11 Big Lie (2007) and Questioning the War on Terror: A Primer for Obama Voters (2009). His website is www.truthjihad.com. More articles by Dr. Barrett ====== Iraq headed for chaos unless politicians unite, U.N. says Sat, Jul 12 11:33 AM EDT image By Ahmed Rasheed and Maggie Fick BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi soldiers backed by Shi'ite militias fought Sunni rebels for control of a military base northeast of Baghdad on Saturday as a U.N. envoy warned of chaos if divided lawmakers do not make progress on Sunday toward naming a government. Forces loyal to Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki launched an early morning push to repel Islamic State militants who fought their way on Thursday into a military base on the edge of Muqdadiya, 80 km (50 miles) northeast of the capital. Heavy fighting raged for hours and was continuing on Saturday afternoon, local security sources said. Sources at the morgue and hospital in the nearby town of Baquba said they had received the bodies of 15 Shi'ite militia fighters transferred after the morning's fighting. State TV also reported that 24 "terrorists" had been killed. Seven civilians including children from nearby villages were killed by helicopter gunship fire, police and medics said. The Sunni militants had moved toward the base after seizing the town of Sadur just to the north, another security source and eyewitnesses said. They were equipped with artillery and mortars and drove vehicles including captured tanks and Humvees. In the western city of Falluja, a hospital received three bodies and 18 wounded people on Saturday after army helicopters bombed the city, government health official Ahmed al-Shami said. Kurdish peshmerga security forces attacked Islamic State positions in Jalawla late Friday night, killing at least 15 militants and three Kurdish security personnel, spokesman Halgurd Hikmat said. The town, in the eastern province of Diyala near the Iranian border, was seized by insurgents last month. Bickering lawmakers in Baghdad are under pressure from the United States, the United Nations and Iraq's own Shi'ite clerics to form a new government swiftly to deal with the Sunni insurgency, which seized territory in the north and west last month, and has held it in the face of ground and air attacks. Few doubt that an inclusive government is needed to hold Iraq together, but there is no consensus on who should lead it. The national parliament elected in April met for the first time on July 1 but failed to agree on nominations for the top three government posts. The U.N. special envoy to Iraq, Nickolay Mladenov, said the country could plunge into chaos if parliament fails to move forward on a government in a next session now set for Sunday. He also urged lawmakers to turn up, after fewer than a third attended the first session when Sunnis and Kurds walked out after Shi'ites failed to nominate a premier to replace Maliki. MALIKI SITTING TIGHT Most of Iraq's Sunnis and Kurds demand Maliki leave office, and Shi'ites are divided, but he shows no sign of quitting. Under a system created after the removal of Saddam Hussein in 2003, the prime minister has always been a member of the Shi'ite majority, the speaker of parliament a Sunni and, with one exception, the occupant of the largely ceremonial presidency has been a Kurd. With politics in Baghdad paralyzed, and Maliki continuing in a caretaker role, the fighting rages on. The death toll rose to 30 on Saturday from a suicide bomb attack on Friday at a Kurdish-controlled checkpoint on the southern edge of Kirkuk province, where families fleeing violence in Tikrit and other areas overrun by militants last month were waiting to pass through. Maliki's opponents accuse him of ruling for the Shi'ite majority at the expense of the Sunni and Kurdish minorities, and want him to step aside. Senior Shi'ite parliamentarian Bayan Jaber, a former interior and finance minister, said on Thursday that he hoped the Shi'ite National Alliance bloc, in which Maliki's State of Law coalition is the biggest group, could agree on its nominee for prime minister before Sunday's meeting. But he said that if Maliki remained the sole nominee, "the problem will remain". Prominent Sunni Arab lawmaker Dhafer al-Ani said this week that "partition of Iraq will be the natural result" if the Shi'ite bloc could not put forward another candidate. "If they insist on Maliki as the prime minister, then we will withdraw from the government," he said. "I believe that it would be hard for any Sunni politician to raise his hand and vote for Maliki as prime minister for a third term." The head of the Kurdish Gorran bloc, Aram Sheikh Mohammed, said Kurdish factions would attend Sunday's session, but the prospects of progress were poor. "If Maliki nominates himself, I think neither the Sunnis nor Kurds will nominate their candidates (for speaker and president)," he said. Kurdish forces seized two oilfields in northern Iraq from a state-run oil company on Friday. SECTARIAN KILLINGS The political deadlock raises fears that Iraq could splinter along ethnic and sectarian lines, a reality already playing out in parts of the country. Iraq's top Shi'ite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, urged fighters on Friday to respect the rights of all Iraqis, regardless of sect or politics. There have been many reports of disappearances and suspected mass killings since the insurgents' offensive began last month. A prominent man in the Sunni majority town of Buhriz, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad was kidnapped from his home on Friday night and found dead hours later, police said. Tensions are high in Sunni areas north of Baghdad where Islamic State militants have lashed out at communities they see as supporting government forces. Iraqi security forces and government affiliated militias appear to have unlawfully executed at least 255 prisoners over the past month in apparent revenge for killings by Islamic State fighters, a Human Rights Watch report said. (Additional reporting by Raheem Salman, Dominic Evans and Reuters TV in Baghdad, Kamal Namaa in Ramadi, and Isabel Coles in Arbil; Writing by Maggie Fick; Editing by Kevin Liffey and David Evans) ======================================================================= View translation أمريكا تعاقب شركة اماراتية لبيعها مواد نفطية الى الحكومة السورية. الامارات تواصل النفاق السياسي ، تعلن دعم المقاومة وفي السر تدعم بشار ! America punish the UAE company to sell oil products to the Syrian Government. Political hypocrisy continues, the support of the resistance in support of Bashar! نـفــود الدهـيـم ‏@nfuod · Jul 5 View translation إعتقال وتعذيب 3 قطريين في #أبوظبي حسبهم الله ونعم الوكيل، إن الله يمهل ولا يهمل! Sadrist leader Muqtada al-Sadr, Saturday, his support for the State of law coalition candidate for the Premiership as the largest bloc in the national coalition, noting that "the nomination is valid within the coalition would be a Pope to end suffering, Sadr said in a statement that" Although brother Maliki has plunged himself and takes us with security rhetoric long but great political crises, and in particular the cooperation of the Iraqi judiciary in the largest coalition bloc replaced most, but with all this I think that you should To submit a candidate prime are brothers of the State of law coalition and especially after Al-Maliki last that he would renounce the Premiership if the candidate from the State of law. " Sadr said that "the candidate must be from the State of law coalition as the largest bloc within the National Alliance which was not previously" disagree, noting that "If the nomination is valid from within a State of law, especially after the Iraqi Parliament waived brother Osama Al-nujaifi, thankfully this would be Pope to end the suffering of his exalted". Sadr stressed the need to "respect and activating the National Alliance within legal frameworks, national and otherwise it will be blank the content, and do not be consequences as unique by the hand without the other," stressing "the national spirit and parental top purpose and names of characters and clusters". Http://bashaer.iq/permalink/5113.html Forum on the Gospels (Translated by Bing) ISIS jihadists demolish mosques, shrines in northern Iraq (PHOTOS) Published time: July 05, 2014 17:18 Blast, Iraq, Politics, Religion, Security, Terrorism Islamic militant sect, ISIS, which has been rampaging across the north and west of Iraq since last month, has been demolishing sacred sites such as shrines and mosques around the historic northern city of Mosul in Nineveh province. Photographs from the area posted online under the banner “Demolishing shrines and idols in the state of Nineveh” depicted mosques being turned into piles of rubble – explosives deployed against Shiite buildings - and bulldozers flattening the shrines. At least four shrines to Sunni Arab or Sufi figures have been destroyed by the bulldozers, according to AFP. The structures had been built around graves of Muslim saints. Six Shiite mosques have also been destroyed using explosives. “We feel very sad for the demolition of these shrines, which we inherited from our fathers and grandfathers,” 51-year-old Mosul resident Ahmed told AFP. “They are landmarks in the city,” he said. Local residents verified that buildings had been destroyed and two cathedrals occupied to the agency. Crosses at the front of Mosul’s Chaldean cathedral and Syrian Orthodox cathedral were removed and replaced with the black flag of the Islamic State. Follow RT's LIVE UPDATES on the Iraq crisis The city of Tal Afar, approximately 70km west of Mosul, was also targeted, with a Shiite Huseiniya temple being blown up. One of the shrines destroyed had survived a prior targeting by the group on June 24. “Dozens of men, women and children formed a human wall and surrounded the sacred shrine of Sheikh Fathi in al-Mushahada neighbourhood of western Mosul and prevented the terrorists from storming it,” Ninawa tribal council deputy head Ibrahim al-Hassan told Al-Shorfa shortly after the incident. Sheikh Fathi’s shrine – one of Mosul’s most important, dating back to 1760, was among those destroyed. Mosul was captured on June 10 when Sunni militants drove Iraq’s army out of the city. Thousands of civilians fled as jihadists took control of the city against the Shi’ite majority Baghdad government led by Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. Maliki has sworn to defeat the jihadists; on Friday he stated publicly that: “Pulling out of the battlefield while facing terrorist organizations that are against Islam and humanity would show weakness instead of carrying out my legitimate, national and moral responsibility.” “I have vowed to God that I will continue to fight by the side of our armed forces and volunteers until we defeat the enemies of Iraq and its people,” he said. = Baghdad: Self-proclaimed caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi made an unprecedented appearance in the Iraqi city of Mosul, which his forces helped capture last month, and ordered Muslims to obey him, according to a video posted online. That marks a significant change for the shadowy jihadist, whose Islamic State (IS) group led a lightning offensive that overran swathes of five provinces north and west of Baghdad. The onslaught has alarmed world leaders, displaced hundreds of thousands and piled pressure on Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki as he seeks a third term in office following April elections. The video posted Saturday showed a portly man clad in a long black robe and turban with a long greying beard addressing worshippers at weekly prayers at Al-Nur mosque in central Mosul. "I am the wali (leader) who presides over you, though I am not the best of you. So if you see that I am right, assist me," said the man, purportedly Baghdadi. "If you see that I am wrong, advise me and put me on the right track, and obey me as long as I obey God." - Pan-Islamic 'caliphate' - Text superimposed on the video identified the man as "Caliph Ibrahim", the name Baghdadi took when the group on June 29 declared a "caliphate", a pan-Islamic state last seen in Ottoman times, in which the leader is both political and religious. The video is the first ever official appearance by Baghdadi, said Aymenn al-Tamimi, an expert on Islamist movements, though the jihadist leader may have appeared in a 2008 video under a different name. Baghdadi is believed to have been born in the Iraqi city of Samarra in 1971, and joined the insurgency against the US military following the 2003 invasion that ousted dictator Saddam Hussein. He spent time in a US military prison and eventually took over leadership of a group, then affiliated with Al-Qaeda and known as the Islamic State of Iraq, in 2010. At the time, the group was believed to be on the ropes, but Baghdadi led it back to prominence. Last year, the organisation expanded into Syria, becoming a major player in the war to oust President Bashar al-Assad. Baghdadi subsequently cut all ties to Al-Qaeda, and his influence now rivals that of that group's global chief, Ayman al-Zawahiri. Influential Sunni Muslim scholar Yusef Al-Qaradawi, meanwhile, warned that the establishment of a caliphate by "a group known for its atrocities and radical views does not serve the Islamic project". The title of caliph can only be "given by the entire Muslim nation", not by a single group, the cleric added. IS is known for its brutality, executing and crucifying opponents, and photographs emerged Saturday showing its militants demolishing Sunni and Shiite mosques and shrines in Mosul and surrounding Nineveh province. Iraqi security forces wilted when faced with the initial IS-led onslaught, and while they have since performed more capably, they have struggled to retake territory from insurgents. An assault on Saddam's hometown of Tikrit has gone on for more than a week without retaking the city, while a suicide car bomb killed 15 people Friday near the sensitive shrine city of Samarra. The group, formerly called the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, renamed itself simply the Islamic State last week. Iraq has reached out for international assistance and Washington has sent military advisers, but Baghdad's request for American air strikes against the militants has been rebuffed. Tehran has also pledged assistance, and state media reported Saturday that an Iranian pilot was killed in Iraq, without providing details on whether he died while flying sorties or fighting on the ground. Maliki's security spokesman, meanwhile, told AFP Saturday that ground forces commander Ali Ghaidan and federal police chief Mohsen al-Kaabi have both been sacked, the most senior officers to be dismissed since the militant offensive began. - Government formation deadlock - The crisis has polarised Iraq's Shiite Arab, Sunni Arab and Kurdish communities, just as their leaders look to form a new government following April elections. Maliki, labelled at home and abroad as authoritarian and sectarian, insisted Friday that he would not give up on his quest for a third term. He pointed to his strong electoral mandate, in which his bloc won nearly three times more seats than its closest challenger. His remarks came after a farcical parliamentary session in which Iraq's various factions -- many of which strongly oppose him staying -- failed to unite and choose a speaker. That sparked criticism from abroad and from the country's top Shiite religious leader. Further highlighting Iraqi disunity, the leader of the country's autonomous Kurds has called on their lawmakers to work towards holding a referendum on independence. The Kurds' long-held dream of statehood has been advanced by the latest crisis, with their forces having moved in to take control of disputed territory they want to incorporate over Baghdad's strong objections. ====== Iraq names moderate Sunni parliament speaker in move to break political deadlock Tue, Jul 15 14:20 PM EDT image 1 of 5 By Isra' al-Rubei'i and Ahmed Rasheed BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi politicians named a moderate Sunni Islamist as speaker of parliament on Tuesday, a long-delayed first step towards a power-sharing government urgently needed to save the state from disintegration in the face of a Sunni uprising. But after quickly picking Salim al-Jabouri as speaker, lawmakers argued bitterly for hours over his Shi'ite deputy, suggesting they are still far from a deal on a new government or a decision on the fate of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. Iraq's army and allied Shi'ite militia launched an assault to retake the executed former dictator Saddam Hussein's home city Tikrit from the al Qaeda offshoot known as the Islamic State and allied militants, who seized it in mid-June during a lightning assault through the north. The stunning advance by the militants over the past month has put Iraq's very survival in jeopardy even as its politicians have been deadlocked over forming a new government since an election in April. Maliki, whose State of Law coalition won the most seats but would need allies to form a government, has ruled since the election as a caretaker, defying demands from Sunnis and Kurds that he step aside for a less-polarising figure. Washington has made clear that setting up a more inclusive government in Baghdad is a requirement for its military support against the insurgency. Under Iraq's governing system in place since the post-Saddam Hussein constitution was adopted in 2005, the prime minister is a member of the Shi'ite majority, the speaker a Sunni and the largely ceremonial president a Kurd. Each of the three is meant to have two deputies, drawn from the other two groups. Picking the Sunni speaker is parliament's first task, but Sunni leaders had previously refused to nominate one until a deal was reached on a prime minister. Parliament now has 30 days to elect a president, who will then have 15 days to nominate a prime minister. Ibrahim al-Jaafari, Maliki's predecessor as premier and now head of the National Alliance, a Shi'ite umbrella group that includes Maliki's State of Law bloc and rivals, hinted that a wider deal had been reached: the alliance would vote for Jabouri and expected support from Sunni politicians in return. "It is the nature of any deal that any commitment should be mutual. It doesn't make sense that we support them and they don't support us," Jaafari said. However, he did not specify whether the Shi'ites now intended to nominate Maliki for a third term as prime minister or choose another candidate. Parliament chose Haidar al-Abadi, a member of Maliki's State of Law bloc, as the Shi'ite deputy speaker, but only after three rounds of voting and hours of contentious debate, during which he was unexpectedly challenged for the post by Ahmad Chalabi, a former ally of the United States. Although Chalabi eventually withdrew, his decision to stand suggested ongoing discord within the Shi'ite alliance over how to allocate top posts, perhaps including the premiership itself. However, the decision to award the deputy speaker's post to Maliki's ally Abadi could increase the likelihood that the prime minister steps aside: an aide to a senior Kurdish politician, speaking on condition of anonymity, noted that in the past the Shi'ite parties had chosen deputy speakers from outside the prime minister's bloc, to maintain unity among Shi'ite factions. SHARP SWORD Iraq's army and allied Shi'ite militia have managed to halt the advance of Sunni fighters north of Baghdad but have struggled to recapture territory, launching several attempts so far to retake Tikrit. The Defence Ministry said troops launched their latest assault on the Tigris River city, operation "Sharp Sword", at dawn on Tuesday, attacking from the south and battling insurgents in the southern districts. An officer taking part in Tuesday's assault said uniformed volunteer fighters and militia forces, including the Shi'ite Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, were fighting alongside the army while following orders from their own militia commanders. The assault was launched from the village of Saddam's birth, Awja, some 8 km (5 miles) south of the city which the army retook on the night of July 3. Tuesday's initial fighting focused around the Shishin district of south Tikrit, the officer and another soldier said, adding that the army was also heading towards Saddam's former presidential palace compounds, where Islamic State fighters had held captives and run their Islamic court trials. Soldiers were also fighting to take Tikrit hospital on strategic high ground. Across the Tigris River to the east, the army landed paratroopers in Albu Ajeel, a village where Iraqiya state television said some insurgents had fled. One army officer in the fighting said they were surprised the resistance they experienced was less fierce than expected. Five civilians including two young girls and an elderly woman were killed when by stray fire from an army helicopter, a local police officer said. The Sunni insurgency is led by the Islamic State, which shortened its name from the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) after last month's advance into Iraq and declared its leader caliph - ruler of all Muslims. It now controls a swathe of territory from Aleppo in Syria close to the Mediterranean to the outskirts of Baghdad. In Iraq last month it initially won the support of other armed Sunni groups, including tribal fighters and Saddam loyalists, but there have been signs that those groups are turning against the al Qaeda offshoot in recent days. Residents of a town north of Baghdad found 12 corpses with execution-style bullet wounds on Monday following fighting overnight between Islamic State fighters and the Naqshbandi Army, a group led by Saddam loyalists. Washington hopes a more inclusive government in Baghdad could save Iraq by persuading moderate Sunnis to turn against the insurgency, as many did during the "surge" offensive in 2006-2007 when U.S. troops paid them to switch sides. Two suicide bombers detonated explosive-packed cars at a restaurant on the road between Samarra and Tikrit, a witness said. A doctor at Samarra hospital said 12 soldiers and volunteer fighters were killed in the blast. In the town of Mada'in, southeast of Baghdad, two bombs at an army recruitment centre killed nine people, police and medical sources said. In Yousefiya, also south of Baghdad, four soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb on their patrol. In Falluja, which fell to Islamist militants and other insurgents in January, shelling and air strikes began near dawn and continued through the morning. A doctor at Falluja hospital said five people were killed and 17 wounded, including a child. Helicopters dropped barrels loaded with explosive in the town of Karma, northeast of Falluja, killing four civilians and wounding 22, a source at the town's hospital said. The hospital was later bombed so severely that it could not receive patients, the source said. Fighting has yet to reach Baghdad itself, but the capital is frequently attacked by bombers. Two car bombs in quick succession in the Shi'ite Sadr City district killed 12 people and wounded more than 20, police and hospital sources said. (Additional reporting by a correspondent in Salahuddin province, Maggie Fick in Baghdad, Isabel Coles in Arbil, Kamal Namaa in Anbar province; Writing by Dominic Evans; Editing by Peter Graff) ===============

Reidar Visser says Full Atrticle: http://gulfanalysis.wordpress.com/2014/07/15/the-iraqi-parliament-elects-its-new-speakership/ Claims and counter-claims continue ----- The vote today was historical also for reasons beyond the ongoing struggle against ISIS. Above all, it is the first time in Iraq’s post-2003 history that Iraqi deputies have followed the constitution to the letter and held a separate vote on the parliament speaker and his two deputies.The votes on the new speaker and his two deputies were in themselves interesting, although not much is known about voting patterns because of the secrecy (paper ballots) with which the votes were conducted. Firstly, Salim al-Jibburi (originally of the Sunni Islamist Iraqi Islamic Party (IIP) from Diyala and currently part of a wider Sunni alliance headed by Usama al-Nujayfi, the former parliament speaker), won the speakership itself with an impressive 194 votes, far more than the required absolute majority of 165 votes. His challenger, Shuruq al-Abaji (a female MP) from a smaller secular bloc got only 19 votes--- The first deputy vote was more dramatic, with Ahmed Chalabi mounting a surprise internal Shiite challenge to Haydar al-Abbadi of the Maliki list. Abbadi did win the competition with Chalabi 149-107 but that was not enough for an absolute majority. Chalabi then withdrew and Abbadi won the second vote with 188 votes, though 76 deputies voted blank. The bomb represented by the Chalabi challenge may have been an attempt at testing the waters for a forthcoming premier candidacy and his ability to attract votes outside the Shia alliance, although it has been suggested that it is difficult to compare the Abbadi-Chalabi struggle with a future Maliki-Chalabi struggle because Abbadi has more friends than Maliki outside his own faction. At any rate, it was quite impressive for Maliki’s coalition to gain 149 votes for Abbadi in today’s heated political atmosphere, where the advance of ISIS has been so marked that it could now be hurting Maliki more than it is helping him. Perhaps the most important result of today’s vote was the leap of faith that Iraqi politicians conducted. Shiites and Kurds voted for the Sunni Islamist Jibburi as speaker without any guarantees regarding the deputy speakers – not to speak about the president or the PM. This in turn could have positive side effects, and hopefully the president will be duly elected in the same manner and with adherence to the constitutional timeline – 30 days from the first parliament meeting on 1 July.

===