Iraq Situation Report: January 27-28, 2015
January 28, 2015 - Institute for the Study of WarThe influence of Iran and the militias it backs is expanding to western Iraq.
The influence of Iran and the militias it backs is expanding to western Iraq.
ISIS Forces Defeated in Ayn al-Arab/Kobane: YPG advances in Ayn al-Arab appear to have defeated ISIS forces in the town.
The Iraqi Security Forces and the Peshmerga on one side and ISIS on the other side are all setting conditions for a future operation that aims to dislodge ISIS from Mosul.
A joint force of Iraqi Police, Iraqi Army, and Popular Mobilization Units containing Iraqi Shi’a militias reportedly launched an operation to retake villages in the Mansuriyah sub-district, north of Muqdadiyah.
Peshmerga forces resumed their offensive posture in northern Iraq following a recent lull in anti-ISIS operations.
The report of an ISIS deployment of reinforcements to northern Hasaka province follows recent reports of ISIS fighters withdrawing into the area following a Peshmerga and Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) operation to clear the adjacent Sinjar district in Ninewa Province, Iraq.
The report of an ISIS deployment of reinforcements to northern Hasaka province follows recent reports of ISIS fighters withdrawing into the area following a Peshmerga and Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) operation to clear the adjacent Sinjar district in Ninewa Province, Iraq.
The attacks by ISIS on Peshmerga forces in the main area of Sinjar district, west of Mosul, highlight that the area remains contested between ISIS on one side and Peshmerga, Yazidi fighters, and most likely fighters from the Kurdish YPG on the other side.
ISIS has escalated its attacks on Baquba, the capital city of Diyala Province, at a time when Iraqi Shi’a militias and Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) are preparing to launch an assault to clear ISIS from the last area under its control in Diyala province.
The last three days have witnessed a prioritization of Anbari areas where the Iraqi Government has largely not committed resources since the fall of Mosul in June 2014. The district of Rutba fell to ISIS on June 25, 2014 and has been under uncontested control by the organization ever since.