Malzberg | Jonathan Gilliam discusses the latest in the battle against ISIS in Iraq
Fmr. Navy Seal and FBI Agent, President, US Continued Service joins Rick Betsy to discuss the latest in the battle against ISIS in Iraq, with Iraqi forces taking back the city of Tikrit ...
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Iraq war: Iraqi war security forces cleared the area 5 kilometers Anbar
Iraq war: Iraqi war security forces cleared the area 5 kilometers Anbar Iraq war: Iraqi war security forces cleared the area 5 kilometers Anbar Iraq war: Iraqi war security forces cleared the...
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Iraq war: Iraqi war security forces cleared the area 5 kilometers Anbar - Video
Iraqi military commanders have been ordered to drive ISIS militants out of the country and into Syria by the end of the year.
A day after forces loyal to the government of Iraq scored a major victory in Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, a senior military source told NBC News that politicians were aiming to defeat the extremists "within a few months."
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the defense official said: "It is not a simple operation at all. We will need the help of all those who can help us."
However, he suggested that Iraqi officials appeared to be "over-optimistic." The source added: "Such an operation will cost us a lot and it is not going to be done within the next couple of months."
Iraq's President Fuwad Masoom recently indicated that his government aimed to eliminate ISIS from the country over the next 12 months.
"After liberating many areas were occupied by ISIS, Iraq is looking to defeat ISIS in Iraq within one year," he said at the Arab League Summit in Egypt on Saturday.
And in a New Year's message on Jan. 1, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi promised that 2015 "will be the year of liberating all Iraqi lands, and defeat ISIS."
Iraqi government forces, backed by Shiite Muslim militias and U.S.-led airstrikes, on Wednesday claimed victory over the Sunni Muslim extremists in most of Tikrit, after a month of fighting.
However, the defense official warned that Shiite Muslim militias were being reckless in their pursuit of victory.
"The commanders of Shiite militias are using pressure on the government to give orders to advance more and more without thinking of the consequences of sending our troops into fighting zones without being sure that we will win the battle," he said.
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War on ISIS: Iraq Military Told to Drive Out Militants by ...
FILE - This image posted on a militant website on Saturday, June 14, 2014, which has been verified and is consistent with other AP reporting, appears to show militants from the Islamic State group with truckloads of captured Iraqi soldiers after taking over a base in Tikrit. Iraq won the battle to retake the city of Tikrit from the Islamic State group, backed by a coalition of the unlikely in Iranian advisers, Shiite militias and U.S.-led airstrikes, but the country now faces what could be its most important battle: Winning the support of the Sunni. (AP Photo via militant website, File)(The Associated Press)
FILE - This file image posted on a militant website on Saturday, June 14, 2014, which has been verified and is consistent with other AP reporting, appears to show militants from the Islamic State group leading away captured Iraqi soldiers dressed in plain clothes after taking over a base in Tikrit. Iraq won the battle to retake the city of Tikrit from the Islamic State group, backed by a coalition of the unlikely in Iranian advisers, Shiite militias and U.S.-led airstrikes, but the country now faces what could be its most important battle: Winning the support of the Sunni. (AP Photo via militant website, File)(The Associated Press)
FILE - In this file photo taken Tuesday, March 31, 2015, Iraqi security forces launch rockets against Islamic State extremist positions in Tikrit, 80 miles (130 kilometers) north of Baghdad. Iraq won the battle to retake the city of Tikrit from the Islamic State group, backed by a coalition of the unlikely in Iranian advisers, Shiite militias and U.S.-led airstrikes, but the country now faces what could be its most important battle: Winning the support of the Sunni. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed, File)(The Associated Press)
FILE - In this file photo taken Monday, March 30, 2015, Iraqi security forces launch rockets against Islamic State extremist positions during clashes in Tikrit, 130 kilometers (80 miles) north of Baghdad. Iraq won the battle to retake the city of Tikrit from the Islamic State group, backed by a coalition of the unlikely in Iranian advisers, Shiite militias and U.S.-led airstrikes, but the country now faces what could be its most important battle: Winning the support of the Sunni. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed, File)(The Associated Press)
FILE - In this file photo taken Sunday, March 15, 2015, an Iraqi soldier inspects the demolished tomb of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein in Tikrit, 130 kilometers (80 miles) north of Baghdad. Iraq won the battle to retake the city of Tikrit from the Islamic State group, backed by a coalition of the unlikely in Iranian advisers, Shiite militias and U.S.-led airstrikes, but the country now faces what could be its most important battle: Winning the support of the Sunni. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed, File)(The Associated Press)
BAGHDAD Iraq won the battle to retake the city of Tikrit from the Islamic State group, backed by a coalition of the unlikely in Iranian advisers, Shiite militias, and U.S.-led airstrikes, but the country now faces what could be its most important battle: Winning the support of the Sunni.
Sunni tribes played a key role during the U.S. occupation fighting back al-Qaida in Iraq, the Islamic State group's predecessor, and their distrust of Baghdad's Shiite-led government eased the extremists' takeover last summer. But as Tikrit now sits in ruins, still patrolled by fractious Shiite militias, the powerful Sunni tribes remain as distrustful as ever as further offensives in their heartland loom.
The government "needs those local tribes to secure the territory and hold the fort until government function is restored in these areas," said Sajad Jiyad, a senior researcher at al-Bayan Center for Studies and Planning in Baghdad. "The government needs to make sure that everyone who fights today has a future in Iraq tomorrow and not just to find a short-term military solution today and forget about them later."
Sunni grievances mounted during the eight-year rule of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, widely seen as pursuing sectarian policies. Al-Maliki responded to rising Sunni protests with a violent crackdown, further stirring dissent. By December 2013, security forces withdrew from Ramadi after dismantling a protest camp, allowing Islamic State militants ultimately to take it over.
When the Islamic State group swept across a third of Iraq last summer, many Sunnis initially greeted them as liberators. Analysts believe members of Saddam's outlawed Baath Party, stacked largely with Sunnis, also aided the extremists.
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After Tikrit victory over Islamic State group, Iraq faces new challenge: Winning Sunni support
Shiite fighters from the Popular Mobilisation units patrol the streets in Tikrit, Iraq, on April 4, 2015. AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images
BAGHDAD - Iraq won the battle to retake the city of Tikrit from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), backed by a coalition of the unlikely in Iranian advisers, Shiite militias, and U.S.-led airstrikes, but the country now faces what could be its most important battle: Winning the support of the Sunni.
Sunni tribes played a key role during the U.S. occupation fighting back al Qaeda in Iraq, ISIS' predecessor, and their distrust of Baghdad's Shiite-led government eased the extremists' takeover last summer. But as Tikrit now sits in ruins, still patrolled by fractious Shiite militias, the powerful Sunni tribes remain as distrustful as ever as further offensives in their heartland loom.
The government "needs those local tribes to secure the territory and hold the fort until government function is restored in these areas," said Sajad Jiyad, a senior researcher at al-Bayan Center for Studies and Planning in Baghdad. "The government needs to make sure that everyone who fights today has a future in Iraq tomorrow - and not just to find a short-term military solution today and forget about them later."
Sunni grievances mounted during the eight-year rule of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, widely seen as pursuing sectarian policies. Al-Maliki responded to rising Sunni protests with a violent crackdown, further stirring dissent. By December 2013, security forces withdrew from Ramadi after dismantling a protest camp, allowing ISIS militants ultimately to take it over.
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The video purportedly shows Islamic State militants destroying historic artifacts in Iraq. Men are seen using sledgehammers and shooting rifles a...
When ISIS swept across a third of Iraq last summer, many Sunnis initially greeted them as liberators. Analysts believe members of Saddam's outlawed Baath Party, stacked largely with Sunnis, also aided the extremists.
The few Sunni tribes that stood up against ISIS have paid a heavy price. In the Salahuddin town of Duluiyah, a mass grave holds the remains of 150 people from the al-Jabour tribe, killed by the militants in December. The militants also killed more than 200 men, women and children from the Sunni Al Bu Nimr tribe in Anbar province in November. The mass killings offered a stark warning to others considering aiding the government.
With Tikrit taken, Sunni residents in ISIS-held Anbar province, home to Fallujah, and Nineveh province, home to Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city, expect the Iraqi offensive to now turn its attention to their regions. But many remain fearful of both ISIS, as well as the Shiite militias involved in the Iraqi offensive.
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Beating ISIS in battle leaves bigger test for Iraq