Iraqi Forces Retake Center of Ramadi From ISIS

[FillJackson]

Iraqi forces said on Monday they had seized a strategic government complex in the western city of Ramadi from the Islamic State after a fierce weeklong battle to retake it, following a brutal seven-month occupation by the extremist group.

“The security forces have entered the governmental buildings and raised the Iraqi flags over them after killing many ISIS militants, and the rest have escaped,” Brig. Gen. Yahya Rasool, a spokesman for the Iraqi military, announced.

Although he at first declared the city “fully liberated,” another military commander, Maj. Gen. Ismail al-Mahlawi, noted that pockets of resistance remained in about 30 percent of the city, particularly in the communities of Sajariya and Sufiya, on the eastern outskirts of the city, and Albu Ghanim, to the north. Islamic State fighters captured those villages in April before advancing on the center of Ramadi.links
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/29/world/middleeast/iraq-ramadi-isis.html?_r=0
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-35188479
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/nation_world/20151228_Iraq_forces_retake_Ramadi_compound_from_I SIS.html#JiXLG6xSvzDg2Tur.99

[Dresta]

Small territorial gains are meaningless against IS. After Kobane, where IS lost a lot of fighters making a stand, the IS leadership has decided not to take those kind of stands, and to relinquish territory rather than take heavy losses (they are, after all, still a guerrilla fighting group).

It is only Raqqa and Mosul that it won't give up without a huge stand.



Air strikes have had an impact on Isis’s tactics and casualty rate, above all when they are used in close co-operation with a well-organised ground force like the Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG). Isis may have lost as many as 2,200 fighters at Kobani which is a small and closely packed city. On the other hand, the length of time it took to drive Isis out of it with 700 air strikes demonstrated their fighters’ willingness to die.

Many Isis commanders reportedly regard their tactics at Kobani as a mistake which cost the group too many casualties and which it should not repeat. To do so it sacrificed two of its most important military assets which are mobility and surprise. This does not mean that it will not fight to the last bullet for cities like Raqqa and Mosul, but it did not do so for Tikrit and Sinjar where it used snipers, booby traps and IEDs, but did not commit large detachments of troops.

Isis has modified its tactics to take account of the continuing risk of air strikes. It now has a decentralised command structure, with tactical decisions being taken by leaders of small units of eight to 10 men, whose overall mission is determined from the centre – but not how it should be accomplished. This limits the ability of its opponents to monitor its communications.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/syria-air-strikes-why-isis-is-a-formidable-ferocious-enemy-that-will-not-be-defeated-from-the-air-a6759471.html

I seriously doubt the Iraqi military will ever be in good enough condition to win significant victories against IS. It is a joke military force.

[FillJackson]

Small territorial gains are meaningless against IS. After Kobane, where IS lost a lot of fighters making a stand, the IS leadership has decided not to take those kind of stands, and to relinquish territory rather than take heavy losses (they are, after all, still a guerrilla fighting group).
I thought the idea of IS was that they were a state and not an insurgency.

I don't think IS losing territory is insignificant, part of what made them attractive to foreign recruits is that they were winning. I don't any individual territory is important, but if they keep yielding territory, I think you can build on those tactical gains.

I've read reports ISIS recruits being demoralized after Kobani because they lost several thousand fighters for pretty much no reason.

I think if they are knocked back to the level of a guerilla army that makes them less attractive.

[LJJ]

Ramadi has been the Iraqi capital of terrorism since the deposing of Saddam.

You can chase out a couple hundred IS fighters, but you can't do anything about the hundreds of thousands of inhabitants who happily welcome IS over the Shia Iraqi government and will continue to provide a breeding ground for jihad and insurgency.

[FillJackson]

ISIS seems to evacuating Manbij outside Aleppo. About 60 miles from Raqqa.
Kurdish SDF

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CXU6iOnW8AAWuMP.jpg

The top three of those bridges don't exist anymore. Kurds just captured the last direct crossing over the Euphrates between Manbij and Raqq.

[LJJ]

But there was no ISIS in Aleppo, only moderate freedom fighters*.

*According to US officials and media, a month ago when the Russians were bombing Aleppo.

[FillJackson]

Kurds just captured the last direct crossing over the Euphrates between Manbij and Raqq.

ISIS bombs captured by Kurds in the area of the bridge.
http://www.hawarnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/KOB-ERBA-BOMBE-BARKERI2-620x350.jpg

[Nick Young]

Which one is the city with the Apocalyptic Roman prophecy?

Why don't we just draw the ISIS morons in to that city, evacuate as many civilians as we can manage and then firebomb the shit out of it Dresden style?

Go on Kurds! Keep kicking ass!

[FillJackson]

Aron Lund ‏@aronlund 2h2 hours ago
IS is clearly under extreme pressure; lost ground on ~8 fronts in #Iraq & #Syria (Marea, Kweiris, Kobane/Raqqa, E. Homs, Hassake, Sinjar, > Baiji, Ramadi), while its economy & governance suffers & the humanitarian crisis worsens due to US oil bombings. May be in for a bad 2016.

Aron Lund ‏@aronlund 1h1 hour ago
And about that, I think the Ru/Iran surge in Syria may be causing a similar slow-building overload on Idleb rebels, effects not yet visible.>

[DonDadda59]

Aron Lund ‏@aronlund 2h2 hours ago
IS is clearly under extreme pressure; lost ground on ~8 fronts in #Iraq & #Syria (Marea, Kweiris, Kobane/Raqqa, E. Homs, Hassake, Sinjar, > Baiji, Ramadi), while its economy & governance suffers & the humanitarian crisis worsens due to US oil bombings. May be in for a bad 2016.

Looks like the end times is coming sooner than ISIS anticipated. :applause:

Too bad this news will anger all the pro-ISIL anti-America posters here... And there's a lot of them.

[Smook B]

Looks like the end times is coming sooner than ISIS anticipated. :applause:

Too bad this news will anger all the pro-ISIL anti-America posters here... And there's a lot of them.

No one here is pro-ISIS cut that shit out.

[DonDadda59]

No one here is pro-ISIS cut that shit out.

Could've fooled me. :confusedshrug:

[Dresta]

I thought the idea of IS was that they were a state and not an insurgency.

I don't think IS losing territory is insignificant, part of what made them attractive to foreign recruits is that they were winning. I don't any individual territory is important, but if they keep yielding territory, I think you can build on those tactical gains.

I've read reports ISIS recruits being demoralized after Kobani because they lost several thousand fighters for pretty much no reason.

I think if they are knocked back to the level of a guerilla army that makes them less attractive.
Sure, but they aren't suicidal; they well know that guerrilla tactics are their forte, and they combine this with some conventional warfare and urban terrorism, but they obviously aren't going to stand around waiting to be bombed by air power - their weakness in that respect necessitates their using these tactics, and not simply conventional warfare.


Aron Lund ‏@aronlund 2h2 hours ago
IS is clearly under extreme pressure; lost ground on ~8 fronts in #Iraq & #Syria (Marea, Kweiris, Kobane/Raqqa, E. Homs, Hassake, Sinjar, > Baiji, Ramadi), while its economy & governance suffers & the humanitarian crisis worsens due to US oil bombings. May be in for a bad 2016.

Aron Lund ‏@aronlund 1h1 hour ago
And about that, I think the Ru/Iran surge in Syria may be causing a similar slow-building overload on Idleb rebels, effects not yet visible.>
Who knows really. If it is true, then the entry of Russia into the conflict has clearly been a turning point, but people have been predicting a big change for some time now. Here's KevNYC thinking serious change was taking effect like 6 months ago:

http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/showthread.php?t=384405

Was clearly nonsense then, and his buying the media narrative that the Turks actually care about IS, and weren't just looking to bomb the Kurds. IS, and other groups, still seem to have too much outside support for them to be anywhere near their demise.

[FillJackson]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CXWF45xWQAACvgs.png:large

So here's where the SDF forces are moving. Will be interesting to see how Turkey responds. They didn't want Kurdish forces west of the Euphrates.

The SDF is not solely Kurdish, (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_Democratic_Forces) but I think it's some of the same Kurdish forces that were having success earlier.
[QUOTE]The Syrian Democratic Forces (Arabic: قوات سوريا الديمقراطية‎, translit. Quwwāt Sūriyā al-Dīmuqrāṭīya; Kurdish: H

[UK2K]

One thing I can definitively say, the Iraqi military isn't nearly as dumb or worthless as the ANA.

[pauk]

Which one is the city with the Apocalyptic Roman prophecy?

Why don't we just draw the ISIS morons in to that city, evacuate as many civilians as we can manage and then firebomb the shit out of it Dresden style?

Go on Kurds! Keep kicking ass!

What? But they are muslims.... you dont have anything against that? :biggums:

[Nick Young]

What? But they are muslims.... you dont have anything against that? :biggums:
Nope. I have always spoken in favor of the Kurds, and them being granted their on internationally recognized nation state.


I only speak against Muslims who kill people and commit acts of violence and terrorism in the name of Islam, or Muslims who justify the actions of other muslims who do these things.


The Kurds are the main group standing up and fighting vs ISIS and they have been fighting ISIS from the beginning.


I have nothing against all Muslims. The Kurds have been f*cked by everyone throughout history, and deserve a nation. Even we the United States have screwed them over multiple times and still they remain loyal.


They are also standing up against the evil f*cking Turks.


GO KURDS GO.

I hope they get Kurdistan by the end of this. They deserve it.

[FillJackson]

But there was no ISIS in Aleppo, only moderate freedom fighters*.

*According to US officials and media, a month ago when the Russians were bombing Aleppo.

??

Are you talking about Aleppo the city or Aleppo the province? The Province is pretty big and you can easily google ISIS Al Bab and find plenty of news reports of ISIS in Aleppo province, which has about 5 million people.

[LJJ]

??

Are you talking about Aleppo the city or Aleppo the province? The Province is pretty big and you can easily google ISIS Al Bab and find plenty of news reports of ISIS in Aleppo province, which has about 5 million people.

Both. When Russia was bombing IS and Al Qaeda targets in north eastern Syria we didn't hear anything from the US but condemnation and that Russia was only bombing moderate rebels (which don't exist).

Now when the Kurds are pushing IS back in this area you can bet we are not going to hear anything about the decisive role Russian bombings played.

[poido123]

links
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/29/world/middleeast/iraq-ramadi-isis.html?_r=0
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-35188479
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/nation_world/20151228_Iraq_forces_retake_Ramadi_compound_from_I SIS.html#JiXLG6xSvzDg2Tur.99




Of course, ISIS is ONLY in Syria :rolleyes:

[fiddy]

One thing I can definitively say, the Iraqi military isn't nearly as dumb or worthless as the ANA.
Really? That must be why they ran like cowards from Mosul last summer :hammerhead:

[FillJackson]

Of course, ISIS is ONLY in Syria :rolleyes:
Are you pretending people are saying this? No one is saying this.