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Key Takeaway: Iraq’s incumbent Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki maneuvered elite military units in Baghdad overnight on August 10, cutting off entrances to the protected Green Zone, in an effort to secure power by use of force. This is currently serving as a demonstration of force.
The “largest bloc” was not tasked by the Iraqi president to form the government today, missing the deadline that was already extended for three days per a request from the president.
Peshmerga forces clashed heavily with ISIS in the area of Gwer, located 30 miles southwest of Arbil city.
U.S. military engagement against ISIS remains limited.
Within the past 24 hours, ISIS seized Mosul Dam.
ISIS continued a multi-front offensive in Syria.
Changes for August 7 update: ISIS gunmen deployed to the Ninewa Plains, an area that includes many villages that are historically home to a large Iraqi Christian population.
The status of the Mosul Dam remains unclear as reports conflict regarding who controls it.
ISIS control of Sinjar has severely escalated the humanitarian crisis in northern Iraq, especially for minority populations like the Yezidis that face brutal persecution if they attempt to subsist under ISIS control.
The president of Iraqi Kurdistan and the leader of the KDP, Masoud Barzani, issued orders for the Peshmerga to take an offensive role against ISIS.