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WASHINGTON, March 12, 2017 Indigenous Iraqi and Syrian forces have made tremendous progress taking the fight to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, and Americans should be very proud of the role played in the effort by a small number of U.S. troops, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said during an interview.

When Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford took over as chairman in October 2015, ISIS had taken vast portions of Iraq and Syria and sought to establish a caliphate. The counter-ISIS strategy he inherited sought to train local forces to combat the terror organization.

This meant small numbers of American and coalition troops would work with Iraqi and vetted Syrian forces. Coalition air assets, special operators and artillery units would support the campaign.

The Iraqis have to be very proud of their forces, Dunford said. But I think we have to be very proud of the coalition, and what U.S. forces have accomplished.

Iraqi forces pushed back ISIS in Ramadi and Beiji and are now pushing into western Mosul -- the largest city taken by ISIS. The strategy is working, the chairman said, and its because young American service members are doing the hard work every day to make it happen.

If you think of the relatively small number of Americans that had deployed to Iraq over the past 18 to 24 months, he said, if you think about how hard they had to work in conjunction with Iraqi security forces to make sure we learned the lessons from Ramadi and Anbar province and applied those lessons with the right capabilities in Mosul; Ill just tell you I am proud of the force that has done that.

The Task Ahead

There still remains much to do in Iraq, the general said, and he is taking nothing for granted.

In Syria, indigenous forces are isolating Raqqa and pushing back well dug-in ISIS forces on all fronts. There, the progress has been dependent on an even smaller number of Americans who worked to recruit, train and strengthen counter-ISIS forces.

We sent those guys into an incredibly complex environment, Dunford said. We told them to go in collect intelligence, develop relationships, vet people and identify people willing to take the fight to the enemy, train those people, equip those people, support those people, and win.

And those special operations forces and U.S. Air Force personnel did it -- day after day, little by little, and under extreme circumstances, the chairman said.

The fact that we are now talking about divergent political challenges, the fact that we are now addressing questions of what happens after Mosul or Raqqa, we shouldnt lose sight of the fact that it is a reflection of the members of the joint force that have actually enabled the indigenous force to take the fight to the enemy, Dunford said. Now we have the political opportunities that we didnt have two years ago to establish the framework for long-term peace and stability, and we owe it to them.

(Follow Jim Garamone on Twitter: @GaramoneDoDNews)

See more here:
Dunford: Americans Should Be Proud of Role US Troops Play in Iraq, Syria - Department of Defense

Iraq - In the midst of ongoing operations in Mosul, the Government of Japan is providing USD 6.7 million to IOM to support its humanitarian response to displacement in Iraq.

Over a one-year period, this contribution will support IOM to assist internally displaced Iraqis, as well as returnees and host community members.

The project will fund two components of the emergency response efforts: shelter support to maintain and upgrade emergency shelter sites and critical arrangements (unfinished schools and religious buildings, among others) to safely house new internally displaced persons (IDPs); and provision of emergency seasonal non-food items (NFI) to meet the immediate needs of families fleeing from conflict.

In areas retaken by the Iraqi government, the project will contribute to promoting community stabilization through several initiatives, including:

Providing 100 low-cost houses with infrastructure.

Implementing six community infrastructure rehabilitation projects (also called Quick Impact Projects), including the rehabilitation of schools and health centres, in response to the communities expressed needs.

Providing training to community members and law enforcement officials on community policing principles.

Carrying out a detailed assessment, through IOM Iraqs Displacement Tracking Matrix, on return movements to retaken areas to inform programmatic decision-making and benefit the wider humanitarian community.

IOM has identified the need for comprehensive community recovery packages targeting areas of return, and is committed to respond to the urgent needs of returnees. IOMs community stabilization initiatives respond to infrastructure damage in retaken areas with urgently needed rehabilitation projects. In addition, the project will continue supporting its successful eye care health activities for vulnerable communities.

In the previous round of the IOM Iraqs Japan-funded programme from May 2016 to February 2017, more than 5,500 displaced children received vision screenings, and more than 1,000 received full eye examinations and prescription glasses.

The contribution of the Government of Japan has enabled IOM to support thousands of displaced Iraqis with emergency assistance and livelihoods, said IOM Iraq Chief of Mission Thomas Lothar Weiss. We are pleased to continue this important partnership, in coordination with the Government of Iraq and humanitarian partners, to improve conditions for those who are still living in displacement as well as for those facing the challenge of returning home in retaken areas, he added.

Mr. Fumio Iwai, Ambassador of Japan to Iraq said, This shows Japans strong and faithful commitment, to addressing the IDP crisis in Iraq, as part of a new package of humanitarian, counter-terrorism and community stabilization in support of Iraq amounting to around 100m USD. He added Japan is determined to serve displaced Iraqi families and host communities respecting human dignity.

Tiba, a 7-year-old displaced girl from Mosul, who now lives in Erbil, said: I am very comfortable with the glasses. I wanted the frame to be pink. I am happy now that I can read, write and watch TV with them. I thank Japan for the eyeglasses. My family is displaced now, but I hope we can return to Mosul one day.

Over three million Iraqis continue to be displaced across Iraq since January 2014. Due to Mosul military operations, which began in mid-October 2016, an additional 283,000 Iraqis have been displaced (cumulative); more than 215,000 are currently displaced; and more than 68,000 have returned home. More than 57,000 have been displaced from West Mosul in the past two weeks.

The latest DTM Emergency Tracking figures on displacement from Mosul operations are available at: http://iraqdtm.iom.int/EmergencyTracking.aspx

Please click to download the latest:

IOM Iraq DTM Mosul Operations - Factsheet (March 9):

http://iraqdtm.iom.int/Downloads/DTM%20Emergency%20Tracking/Mosul%20Cris...

IOM Iraq DTM Mosul Operations Data Snapshot (March 9): http://iomiraq.net/article/0/9-march-2017-mosul-displacement-snapshot

For further information please contact Hala Jaber at IOM Iraq, Tel. +964 751 740 1654, Email: hjaberbent@iom.int

Link:
Japan Donates USD 6.7 Million to Aid Displaced Iraqis: IOM - ReliefWeb

This photo, released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows bloodied streets and damaged buses after a bombing in Damascus on Saturday. SANA via AP hide caption

This photo, released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows bloodied streets and damaged buses after a bombing in Damascus on Saturday.

Two explosions killed more than 40 people in the Syrian capital of Damascus on Saturday in an attack that seemed to target Shiites visiting holy sites from Iraq.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, but there are a number of militant groups in Syria who target Shiites, including the Islamic State and the Syrian affiliate of al-Qaida.

Syrian State TV showed footage of blood-soaked streets after the bombing, according to The Associated Press, as well as damaged buses in a parking lot near Bab al-Saghir cemetery. The cemetery is near one of the seven gates of the old city of Damascus, and many prominent religious figures are buried there, including family members of the Prophet Muhammad.

"The normally secure area is home to a number of Shiite shrines, which continue to draw religious pilgrims," reports NPR's Alison Meuse. "Sunni extremists like Islamic State consider Shiites heretics and blame Shiite militias for propping up Bashar al-Assad's government."

It was unclear whether both explosions were the result of suicide attacks, or if a bomb was placed in the cemetery itself. Iraq's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that at least 40 of those killed were Iraqi, as well as 120 more wounded. Shiites from across the middle east and Asia often visit shrines in Syria, according to the AP.

The number killed is expected to rise, as many people were transported from the scene in critical condition.

The second blast went off 10 minutes after the first, causing harm also to people tending to the wounded, a Damascus correspondent told a TV station, according to Reuters.

Attacks are not uncommon elsewhere in Syria, but they've become rare in the Syrian capital where President Bashar al-Assad has mostly solidified control.

Assad told a Hong-Kong-based TV station on Saturday that his military priority now, as the war in Syria is in its seventh year, is reaching the Islamic State's de-facto capital of Raqqa, according to the AP:

Assad said that "in theory" he shares the same priority with U.S. President Donald Trump of fighting terrorism but that they have had no formal contact yet. He said Russia, a major ally, hopes it can urge the U.S. and Turkey to cooperate with Moscow and Damascus in the fight against terrorism in Syria. Assad's government views all armed opposition as terrorist groups.

As NPR's Merrit Kennedy reported earlier this week, the United States announced a decision to send about 400 more Marines to Syria to help wrest control of Raqqa from ISIS as well. That brings the number of Americans on the ground in that country to about 900.

Originally posted here:
Explosions in Damascus Target Shiites From Iraq, Kill At Least 40 - NPR

Columbus Crew player Justin Meran, also a member of the Iraq national team, wont represent the country in upcoming World Cup Qualifying matches because of President Donald Trumps travel ban.

The player is concerned about his possible re-entry into the United States after matches with Australia and Saudi Arabia later this month.

The Iraq soccer federation posted a message on Facebook and on Twitter about Merams decision and his concern.

Trumps ban, which suspended the refugee program and entry into the U.S. for people from six predominantly Muslim countries, originally included Iraq. The countries in the latest executive order from the president lists Syria, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen and Iran.

With Iraq off the list, logic would lead one to believe that he shouldnt have any trouble representing the country and coming back, but he isnt even taking the chance.

Meram, 28, was born in Michigan but is of Iraqi heritage. He has represented the national team 22 times, scoring two goals.

(H/T SB Nation)

Continued here:
MLS player to miss World Cup Qualifying with Iraq due to fear of Trump travel ban - CBSSports.com

SOUTHWEST ASIA, March 11, 2017 U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, conducting 28 strikes consisting of 111 engagements against ISIS targets yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Officials reported details of yesterdays strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 19 strikes consisting of 25 engagements against ISIS targets:

-- Near Abu Kamal, two strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed two pieces of engineering equipment and a vehicle.

-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, eight strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit; destroyed two wellheads; and damaged four supply routes and a crane.

-- Near Raqqa, nine strikes engaged three ISIS tactical units; destroyed four fighting positions, two ISIS-held buildings, two watercraft, two weapons factories, a tunnel, a vehicle and a vehicle-borne bomb; and damaged a supply route.

Strikes in Iraq

In Iraq, coalition military forces conducted nine strikes consisting of 86 engagements against ISIS targets, coordinated with and in support of Iraqs government:

-- Near Asad, a strike destroyed two tactical vehicles.

-- Near Bayji, a strike suppressed an ISIS heavy machine gun team.

-- Near Kirkuk, a strike destroyed a vehicle and a mortar system.

-- Near Kisik, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle, an ISIS-held building and a mortar system.

-- Near Mosul, four strikes engaged three ISIS tactical units, an ISIS heavy machine gun team and an ISIS sniper team; destroyed six fighting positions, two heavy machine guns, two rocket-propelled grenade systems, two vehicle-borne bombs, two vehicle-borne bomb factories, two mortar systems, a command-and-control node, a tactical vehicle, a roadblock, a supply cache and an ISIS-held building; damaged eight supply routes and an ISIS-held building; and suppressed 17 ISIS mortar teams and ten ISIS tactical units.

-- Near Tal Afar, a strike destroyed a vehicle-borne bomb and weapons cache.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

These strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to destroy ISIS in Iraq and Syria. The destruction of ISIS targets in Iraq and Syria also further limits the group's ability to project terror and conduct external operations throughout the region and the rest of the world, task force officials said.

The list above contains all strikes conducted by fighter, attack, bomber, rotary-wing or remotely piloted aircraft; rocket-propelled artillery; and some ground-based tactical artillery when fired on planned targets, officials noted.

Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike, they added. A strike, as defined by the coalition, refers to one or more kinetic engagements that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single or cumulative effect. For example, task force officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIS vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against a group of ISIS-held buildings and weapon systems in a compound, having the cumulative effect of making that facility harder or impossible to use. Strike assessments are based on initial reports and may be refined, officials said.

The task force does not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target.

Read more here:
Officials Release Details of Latest Counter-ISIS Strikes in Syria, Iraq - Department of Defense