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IS claims attack that killed top Iraqi generals
IS claims attack that killed top Iraqi generals
Islamic State on Thursday claimed a suicide attack that killed two top Iraqi generals along with other soldiers in Iraq's Anbar province where troops are battling the extremists.
3 min read
Violent clashes erupted as joint forces attempted to liberate Ramadi villages from IS control [AFP/Getty]
Two senior Iraqi military commanders were killed on Thursday in a suicide car bomb attacks claimed by the Islamic State group (IS) in the strategically important province of Anbar, where pro-government forces are battling the insurgents, a military spokesman and police sources said.
A source in the military operations room in Anbar told al-Araby al-Jadeed that operations commander Major General Abdel Rahman Abu Ragheef was killed with four of his guards in a rocket attack in the Jarayshi district (15 km north of Ramadi), adding that the attack also resulted in ten other injuries and deaths.
The source also said the commander of the tenth battalion of the Iraqi army, Brigadier General Safeen Abdel Majeed, was killed with two of his guards in a car bomb attack in the same district.
According to the source, violent battles erupted between Iraqi forces and tribal fighters on one hand and the IS on the other hand, while the joint forces attempted to liberate a number of northern Ramadi villages from the control of the IS.
Anbar operations commander Qassem al-Mohammadi was injured earlier this week in an IS attack on his convoy near Ramadi, making it his second injury in Anbar in the past six months.
Mohammed al-Duleimi, member of the Anbar provincial council, confirmed the reports, saying that the two commanders were killed along with 19 soldiers, and that an army helicopter was also damaged during the ongoing battles.
Duleimi added that the fighters who attacked the army sites with advanced weapons were not Iraqi, but from different nationalities, including Chechens, Afghans, and Arabs.
The council member also said that the government of Anbar had demanded Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar Abadi to send rapid reinforcements to the area located between Ramadi and Khalidiyah.
Hadi al-Amry, leader of the Badr militia that operates under the Popular Mobilisation forces, told local media that the ongoing battles in Anbar were no more than "cordon operations" to besiege the IS before starting the actual liberation battles.
Amry added that fighting the IS was not easy, and that achieving victory required more time.
He explained that the army was facing foreign fighters who came from more than 100 different countries to Iraq and Syria, which made the battles even more difficult and doubled the required efforts.
A local security source told al-Araby al-Jadeed that an Iraqi air force MI-35 helicopter had landed near the city of Samarra in the Saladin province before being fired at by the IS with anti-aircraft weapons.
The security source, speaking on conditions of anonymity, said that the helicopter had landed for maintenance by a specialised technical team.
A source in the military operations room in Anbar told al-Araby al-Jadeed that operations commander Major General Abdel Rahman Abu Ragheef was killed with four of his guards in a rocket attack in the Jarayshi district (15 km north of Ramadi), adding that the attack also resulted in ten other injuries and deaths.
The source also said the commander of the tenth battalion of the Iraqi army, Brigadier General Safeen Abdel Majeed, was killed with two of his guards in a car bomb attack in the same district.
According to the source, violent battles erupted between Iraqi forces and tribal fighters on one hand and the IS on the other hand, while the joint forces attempted to liberate a number of northern Ramadi villages from the control of the IS.
Anbar operations commander Qassem al-Mohammadi was injured earlier this week in an IS attack on his convoy near Ramadi, making it his second injury in Anbar in the past six months.
Mohammed al-Duleimi, member of the Anbar provincial council, confirmed the reports, saying that the two commanders were killed along with 19 soldiers, and that an army helicopter was also damaged during the ongoing battles.
Duleimi added that the fighters who attacked the army sites with advanced weapons were not Iraqi, but from different nationalities, including Chechens, Afghans, and Arabs.
The council member also said that the government of Anbar had demanded Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar Abadi to send rapid reinforcements to the area located between Ramadi and Khalidiyah.
Hadi al-Amry, leader of the Badr militia that operates under the Popular Mobilisation forces, told local media that the ongoing battles in Anbar were no more than "cordon operations" to besiege the IS before starting the actual liberation battles.
Amry added that fighting the IS was not easy, and that achieving victory required more time.
He explained that the army was facing foreign fighters who came from more than 100 different countries to Iraq and Syria, which made the battles even more difficult and doubled the required efforts.
A local security source told al-Araby al-Jadeed that an Iraqi air force MI-35 helicopter had landed near the city of Samarra in the Saladin province before being fired at by the IS with anti-aircraft weapons.
The security source, speaking on conditions of anonymity, said that the helicopter had landed for maintenance by a specialised technical team.
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