IRAQ HALTS MILITARY OPERATIONS AGAINST KURDISH FIGHTERS

ISOF soldiers captured in Mosul, Northern Iraq, Western Asia. 16 November, 2016.

Sourced : The Wall Street Journal By Isabel Coles and Ali Nabhan Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi ordered his forces to halt an advance against Kurdish fighters for 24 hours on Friday after clashes between the two U.S. allies in the war against Islamic State raised fears of a new conflict in the north of… Continue reading IRAQ HALTS MILITARY OPERATIONS AGAINST KURDISH FIGHTERS

KURDISH CRISIS COULD BENEFIT IRAN-TURKEY-RUSSIA ENERGY DEAL

Sourced : Al Monitor By Olgu Okumuş Oil prices jumped last week with concerns over Iraq’s military operations against Kurds in Kirkuk. Media reports focused on several aspects of the operations, including the crucial role of Kirkuk’s oil for both sides, the support of the Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Units in the Iraqi government assault and… Continue reading KURDISH CRISIS COULD BENEFIT IRAN-TURKEY-RUSSIA ENERGY DEAL

ERDOGAN THREATENS TO CUT OFF OIL FLOW FROM IRAQ’S KURDISH AREA OVER REFERENDUM

Sourced : Hurriyet Daily News President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan warned on Sept. 25 Turkey could cut off the pipeline that carries oil from northern Iraq to the outside world, intensifying pressure on the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) over its independence referendum. Voting began on Sept. 25 despite strong opposition from Iraq’s central government and neighboring… Continue reading ERDOGAN THREATENS TO CUT OFF OIL FLOW FROM IRAQ’S KURDISH AREA OVER REFERENDUM

ON EVE OF KURDISH INDEPENDENCE VOTE, A WARNING FROM TURKEY

Sourced : New York Times By David Zucchino Iraq — Kurds seeking independence from Iraq came under intense pressure on Saturday from their powerful neighbor, Turkey, which demanded that Iraqi Kurdistan cancel an independence vote scheduled for Monday. Turkey, the main link to the outside world for the autonomous Kurdish enclave in northern Iraq, threatened… Continue reading ON EVE OF KURDISH INDEPENDENCE VOTE, A WARNING FROM TURKEY

ISIS’S EXPANDING CAMPAIGN IN EUROPE

Sourced : Institute for the Study of War By Jennifer Cafarella with Jason Zhou ISIS’s attack campaign in Europe is expanding despite ISIS’s losses of terrain and senior leadership in the Middle East and North Africa. ISIS continues to plan, resource, and execute attacks from its remaining safe havens in Syria, Iraq, and Libya. ISIS… Continue reading ISIS’S EXPANDING CAMPAIGN IN EUROPE

MOMENT OF GLORY ? KURDISH REFERENDA IN IRAQ, SYRIA EXPLAINED

Sourced : Asia Times By Sami Moubayed In 2005, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the then-Prime Minister of Turkey, visited Diyarbakir, a city in the country’s south-east and the scene of an ongoing conflict between Turkish authorities and Kurdish separatists, who consider it the unofficial capital of Turkish Kurdistan. Trying to cajole the Kurds, who make up… Continue reading MOMENT OF GLORY ? KURDISH REFERENDA IN IRAQ, SYRIA EXPLAINED

BALKAN JIHADIS RETURN DISILLUSIONED WITH ISIS “CALIPHATE”

Sourced : Balkan Insight By Jovo Martinovic Hilmi, an ethnic Bosniak, travelled to Syria hoping that life in Islamic State’s‘caliphate would be an ideal religious environment – but he managed to escape 16 months later, disillusioned with what he had found there. “There was nothing there, no electricity, no books, no internet, nothing,” Hilmi told… Continue reading BALKAN JIHADIS RETURN DISILLUSIONED WITH ISIS “CALIPHATE”

IRAQI PM : WITHDRAWAL OF TURKISH TROOPS FROM IRAQ SOON TO COME

Sourced : Kurdistan 24 By G.H. Renaud Referring to an anticipated visit by a Turkish delegation to Iraq, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced on Wednesday that the “imminent” withdrawal of Turkish troops stationed in Iraq. “A Turkish delegation will soon visit Iraq to discuss arrangements for the removal of Turkish forces in Iraq,” Abadi… Continue reading IRAQI PM : WITHDRAWAL OF TURKISH TROOPS FROM IRAQ SOON TO COME

THE TIME HAS COME FOR IRAQI KURDISH TOMAKE ITS CHOICE ON INDEPENDENCE

Sourced : The Washington Post By Masoud Barzani, The president of the Kurdistan region of Iraq. On Sept. 25, the people of Iraqi Kurdistan will decide in a binding referendum if they want independence or to remain part of Iraq. The vote will resolve a conflict as old as the Iraqi state itself between the… Continue reading THE TIME HAS COME FOR IRAQI KURDISH TOMAKE ITS CHOICE ON INDEPENDENCE

MOSUL FIGHT DOWN TO THREE NEIGHBORHOODS

ISOF soldiers captured in Mosul, Northern Iraq, Western Asia. 16 November, 2016.

Sourced : Voice of America The fight for Iraq’s second-largest city is in its final push, with Islamic State down to fewer than 1,000 fighters in three neighborhoods of west Mosul, U.S. military officials said Friday. Speaking with VOA via Skype from Baghdad, Brigadier General Rick Uribe, the deputy commanding general for U.S.-led coalition forces… Continue reading MOSUL FIGHT DOWN TO THREE NEIGHBORHOODS