BAGHDAD: Even after the recapture of Mosul, Daesh still holds significant territory in several Iraqi provinces and has the ability to carry out attacks in government-held areas.
Here are some of the key areas still controlled by the terrorists, the recapture and control of which pose political as well as military challenges:
A town located between Mosul and the Syrian border that had an estimated population of around 200,000 before Daesh seized it in the summer of 2014.
Tal Afar was a Shiite Muslim-majority enclave in the mostly Sunni Muslim area with an overwhelmingly Turkmen population before its capture by Daesh.
“Tal Afar itself is going to be a bit like Mosul, it’s going to be... sort of a quite conventional clearance operation,” said Michael Knights of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
But the issue of which forces will participate, and who will control it after it is retaken, are potential sources of conflict.
“Shiite militia insistence on controlling the Turkmen (town) of Tal Afar juxtaposed with US and Turkish refusal to allow the militias to participate” are among the conditions that could lead to conflict in the future, said Patrick Martin of the Institute for the Study of War.
A town in Iraq’s Kirkuk that is the center of a large Daesh-held area in a province that is otherwise controlled by Kurdish forces.
Security forces entered an anti-government protest camp in the Hawijah area in April 2013, sparking clashes that killed dozens, a key event in a surge in violence in Iraq that culminated in a Daesh offensive that overran swathes of the country the following year.
“Political challenges are preventing the Hawijah operation from starting,” Martin said. “The convergence of Iraqi Kurdish forces, who seek to control Kirkuk and its oil resources, Iraqi Shiite militias who seek to prevent Kurdish separatism and Iraqi government forces could lead to instability in recaptured Kirkuk,” he said.
Hawijah is “part of a threat complex that is an island of ungoverned space in the middle of north-central Iraq. And it’s a complicated, big, long-term problem,” Knights said.
He said clearing Hawijah will likely be left until last.
Daesh holds a string of territory along the Euphrates River valley in Anbar province, including the Al-Qaim area on the Syrian border.
While Iraqi forces have recaptured Ramadi and Fallujah, the two main population centers in Anbar, this territory closer to the border with Syria will be difficult to defend once recaptured.
“Holding the border and preventing (Daesh) infiltration of western Anbar’s expansive deserts with limited manpower will be a serious challenge” for Iraqi forces, Martin said.
Knights agreed. Syrian border areas “are really dangerous areas where Daesh could throw... a tank company over the border and just overrun you and smash you to bits if you’re not careful.”
Successfully defending the small border forts in western Anbar will require sensors on the border to detect intruders and military forces that can respond quickly on the ground or with airstrikes, Knights said.
Iraqi forces have retaken three cities and numerous towns and villages from Daesh, but the terrorists still have a presence in government-held areas and are able to carry out frequent attacks on civilians and security forces personnel.
After Mosul, other Iraqi territory still in Daesh hands
After Mosul, other Iraqi territory still in Daesh hands
UN rights chief slams dangerous ‘tit-for-tat dynamic’ in Mideast war
- Turk deplored the extensive attacks in residential areas, on health facilities, schools, cultural property and water and energy infrastructure
- He stressed that “under the laws of war, civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected at all costs“
GENEVA: The United Nations rights chief voiced alarm Tuesday at the Middle East conflict’s deepening impact on civilians, warning of the dangers of the seeming “tit-for-tat dynamic” between the warring sides.
The United States and Israel began striking Iran on February 28, prompting waves of Iranian strikes across the Gulf.
With hostilities intensifying, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk deplored the extensive attacks in residential areas, on health facilities, schools, cultural property and water and energy infrastructure.
“This apparent tit-for-tat dynamic, involving essential infrastructure with extremely significant civilian impacts, will only increase risks for civilian populations more broadly, with potentially dire consequences across the entire region,” he warned in a statement.
Turk stressed that “under the laws of war, civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected at all costs.”
“All parties are bound by these rules, and must be held to account if they do not,” he said, warning: “the world is watching.”
The UN rights chief warned that “strikes against vital civilian infrastructure in the Middle East — as well as the widening geographic spread of strikes — are further increasing risks for populations across the region, and beyond.”
He pointed to strikes on a water desalination plant and fuel facilities in Iran over the weekend, igniting fires and reportedly disrupting water access for dozens of villages.
It also prompted warnings of “acid rain” that could cause chemical burns and serious lung damage.
“The foreseeable impacts on civilians and the environment of these strikes raise serious questions as to compliance of these attacks with the requirements of international humanitarian law of proportionality and precaution,” Turk said.
“This warrants careful legal scrutiny.”
He also highlighted the broader impact of the war.
The plunge in commercial shipping activity through the Strait of Hormuz was taking a severe toll on access to energy, food and fertilizer across the region and beyond — hitting the world’s most vulnerable people the hardest.
Turk raised concern about reports of detentions, charges and other forms of repression and intimidation against people in a number of countries, in connection with their expression of opinions around the Middle East conflict.
He demanded that all those arbitrarily detained be released immediately and unconditionally.
“States are reminded of their obligation under international human rights law to respect and protect people’s right to freedom of expression — particularly in times of crisis,” he said.
