Archive for the ‘Iraq’ Category

Sergeant First Class Marshall Returns Home From Iraq, Surprises Daughter at School – Video


Sergeant First Class Marshall Returns Home From Iraq, Surprises Daughter at School
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Sergeant First Class Marshall Returns Home From Iraq, Surprises Daughter at School - Video

Iraq to look with Pc – Video


Iraq to look with Pc
Dedicato a tutti i miei colleghi del cantiere in Iraq.

By: Marco Monelli

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Iraq to look with Pc - Video

With incentives and brute force, Islamic State subduing tribes in Syria, Iraq

June 23, 2014: In this file photo, fighters from the Islamic State group parade in a commandeered Iraqi security forces armored vehicle down a main road at the northern city of Mosul, Iraq. The Islamic State group is employing a broad range of strategies to subdue the Sunni Muslim tribes in Syria and Iraq, wooing some with everything from cars to animal feed while brutally suppressing those that resist its rule with mass killings and home demolitions.(AP/File)

BEIRUT The Islamic State group is employing multiple tactics to subdue the Sunni Muslim tribes in Syria and Iraq under its rule, wooing some with gifts everything from cars to feed for their animals while brutally suppressing those that resist with mass killings.

The result is that the extremists face little immediate threat of an uprising by the tribes, which are traditionally the most powerful social institution in the large areas of eastern Syria and northern and western Iraq controlled by the group. Any U.S. drive to try to turn tribesmen against the militants, as the Americans did with Sunnis during the Iraq war, faces an uphill battle.

Some tribes in Syria and Iraq already oppose the Islamic State group. For example, the Shammar tribe, which spans the countries' border, has fought alongside Kurdish forces against the extremists in Iraq. The U.S. and Iraqi governments have proposed creating a national guard program that would arm and pay tribesmen to fight, though the effort has yet to get off the ground.

But in Syria in particular, tribes have no outside patron to bankroll or arm them to take on IS, leaving them with few options other than to bend to Islamic State domination or flee.

"There are people who want to go back and fight them," said Hassan Hassan, an analyst with the Delma Institute in Abu Dhabi. "But the circumstances now mean that you can't provoke ISIS because the strategy they've followed and tactics are to prevent any revolt from inside."

The rulers of the self-styled caliphate have mastered techniques of divide and rule. Tribes are powerful institutions that command the loyalty of their members across the largely desert regions of Syria and Iraq. But they are also far from cohesive. Large tribes are divided up into smaller sub-tribes and clans that can be pitted against each other. Such divisions also emerge on their own, often in connection to control over local resources like oil wells or land.

Also, the Islamic State group itself has roots in the tribes. Though hundreds of foreign fighters have flocked to join the group, most of its leaders and foot soldiers are Iraqis and Syrians and often belong to tribes.

In eastern Syria's Deir el-Zour province, for example, the Ogeidat is one of the largest tribes. One of its major clans, the Bu Jamel, has been a staunch opponent of the extremists. Another, the Bakir, long ago allied itself to the group.

IS operatives use threats or offers of money or fuel to win public pledges of loyalty from senior tribal sheikhs. The group has also wooed younger tribesmen with economic enticements and promises of positions within IS, undermining the traditional power structure of the tribe.

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With incentives and brute force, Islamic State subduing tribes in Syria, Iraq

Canadian planes have flown 116 sorties over Iraq, commander says

Canadian military aircraft have flown more than 100 sorties in Iraq since joining coalition forces at the end of October, a senior commander said Thursday, including escorting a humanitarian aid drop to civilians earlier this week.

Col. Daniel Constable, commander of joint task force Iraq, provided an update for reporters on Canadas mission against Islamic State militants.

While he offered little in the way of specifics, he updated the total number of sorties flown by Canadian aircraft to 116. Broken down by number of sorties per aircraft:

Earlier this week, an undisclosed number of CF-18s escorted a coalition transport aircraft that was conducting a humanitarian aid air drop mission over Iraq, Constable said.

Supplies included water, tents and blankets to help Iraqi civilians who will face harsh winter temperatures in the coming months, he said in a teleconference Thursday morning.

On those missions, Constable noted that transport aircraft have to fly at lower altitudes, and are therefore more vulnerable to attack from the ground.

The presence of our CF-18s to provide top cover for the transport aircraft, allowed it to deliver its aid cargo at a lower altitude knowing that our fighter aircraft could detect and target any air or ground threats, Constable said.

The mission was highly effective, and appreciated by our coalition partner.

Citing security concerns, Constable would not divulge the date on which the mission occurred, how many CF-18s were involved, or which coalition country was providing the aid.

Constable also updated figures on how much fuel Canadas C-150 refueller has delivered to coalition aircraft. More than 976,000 pounds of fuel have been provided to Canadian, U.S., Australian and British planes, he said.

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Canadian planes have flown 116 sorties over Iraq, commander says

Head to Head – Will ISIL put an end to Iraq? – Video


Head to Head - Will ISIL put an end to Iraq?
Iraq #39;s former National Security Adviser Mowaffak al-Rubaie debates ISIL strategy, sectarianism, and the nation #39;s crisis. Subscribe to our channel http://bit....

By: Al Jazeera English

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Head to Head - Will ISIL put an end to Iraq? - Video