Anti War.....
The exact number of new troops being sought is not disclosed, but it’s also not the end of the story, with Iraq also reportedly pushing for moreairstrikes, more weapons, more tanks for the Iraqi military. Just more in general.
The Baiji Refinery, Iraq’s largest, has been contested for months now, as ISIS tries to claim it as part of their increasingly important oil possessions in both Iraq and Syria. Other US strikes were reported around the Mosul Dam.
Evening Tweets......
More Troops, More Arms: Iraq Pushes US to Expand ISIS War
Obama Aides Field Requests for More 'Advisers' on the Ground
by Jason Ditz, October 22, 2014
US officials say that a recent Baghdad visit by top Obama aides, including deputy national security adviser Tony Blinken saw them fielding requests from Iraqi leaders for increased deployments of US troops as “military advisers” on the ground in Iraq.
The exact number of new troops being sought is not disclosed, but it’s also not the end of the story, with Iraq also reportedly pushing for moreairstrikes, more weapons, more tanks for the Iraqi military. Just more in general.
Iraqi and Syrian Kurdish factions are similarly pushing for more US involvement, with the idea that their fight against ISIS is dependent on sucking the Pentagon ever-deeper into the conflict.
Perhaps the scariest part is that Pentagon officials are promising that more is coming, particularly in the air campaign, and are citing heavy rain and concerns about civilian casualties as the reason the attacks haven’t been bigger.
Iraqi officials who bought into the US involvement believing it would be a panacea are increasingly complaining, with Sunni MP Jamila Obeidi complaining that the US hadn’t returned a single ISIS-held city to Iraqi control.
The danger here is that the administration is so desperate for public approval from the Iraqi government that they’ll give in and escalate the war even more than they already have, sucking the US deeper into the protracted conflict.
Report: 25 ISIS Killed in US Airstrikes in Central Iraq
US Strikes Also Reported Around Mosul Dam
by Jason Ditz, October 22, 2014
US airstrikes pounded the area around the central Iraqi city of Baiji today, killing 25 ISIS fighters, according to residents. The attacks focused on the area near the Baiji Refinery.
The Baiji Refinery, Iraq’s largest, has been contested for months now, as ISIS tries to claim it as part of their increasingly important oil possessions in both Iraq and Syria. Other US strikes were reported around the Mosul Dam.
Pentagon officials say they believe the Mosul Dam is a top priority for ISIS, and that they are “threatening” it. They briefly held it earlier in September, but lost it to Kurdish forces at the time. ISIS has been pushing Kurdish frontiers on several fronts this week.
The Dam is not only a major source of electricity for the nation, but a significant water source for northwestern Iraq, territory which is largely controlled by ISIS, but also include some Kurdish frontier territory.
Battles Rage Not Far from Baghdad; 282 Killed, 116 Wounded Across Iraq
by Margaret Griffis, October 22, 2014
A recent surge in bombings continued in Baghdad late on Wednesday, but battles with the Islamic State militants left the most casualties. At least 282 were killed there and elsewhere across Iraq. Another 116 were wounded.
The Blackwater security contractors involved in a mass shooting of Iraqi civilians in 2007 were found guilty of multiple charges in a U.S. court. One guard was convicted of murder, while the other three were found guilty of voluntary manslaughter. Overall, seventeen Iraqis were killed and 20 were wounded in the shooting, but the trial focused only on 31 victims. Blackwater has since changed its name twice, first to Xe services, then to Academi.
In Baghdad, an evening bombing in the Karrada district left five dead and 28 wounded. Security forces killed three militants.
Nine people were killed and 37 were wounded in a blast in Sadr City.
Security forces fought off hundreds of militants in Amiriyat al-Falluja. At least 32 of them were killed. Two suicide bombers blew themselves up. Three security personnel were killed and nine were wounded. The vice chairman of Anbar’s provincial councilcomplained about the weak air support received from the Iraqi government. He demanded to know why there was no coalition air support at all.
In Husseiniya, a body was found.
Gunmen wounded a civilian and a volunteer fighter in Mansouriya.
In Jurf al-Sakhar, 19 militants were killed. A volunteer fighter was shot dead.
Coalition airstrikes killed 154 militants in Siniya.
Security forces killed 23 militants in Falluja.
Near the Mosul Dam, U.S. forces conducted airstrikes. Clashes left an emir, his aide and several other militants dead. At least 13 more were killed and 40 were wounded, according to one report.
In Samarra, 15 militants were killed.
Security forces killed a sniper who was located on top of a building in Muqdadiya.
A number of militants were killed in Dwayliba.
Evening Tweets......
#Syria will not get resolution while opposition bickers http://m.thenational.ae/opinion/comment/syria-will-not-get-resolution-while-the-opposition-bickers … damning broadside against the National Coalition by @hxhassan
Mahmoud Othman Abadi has made Iraq dependent upon Iran http://basnews.com/en/News/Details/Kurdish-Politician--Iraq-Has-Become-Part-of-Iran/39232 …
US trying to crackdown on IS's oil smuggling in Kurdistan and Turkey http://rudaw.net/english/world/231020143 …
IS said to have surrounded Al-Assad base in Anbar http://www.azzaman.com/english/?p=587
Syrian Chemical Weapons, in #ISIS Hands and Renewed Civilian Attacks http://nwsdp.ly/61ofq @SecureBio #Syria
Sources: clashes erupted between #Shia militias of #Badr organization and #Dawa party in Tuz Khurmatu, wounding three people.
#Turkish foreign policy just suffered another failure. For weeks, the Erdogan government thought it could use... http://fb.me/6R8UgwQcd
Morning tweets ....
Syria Direct
ROUNDUP: Mourek up for grabs, 553 dead in first month of coalition strikes, Assad fires 5 governors: http://syriadirect.org/rss/1628-syria-direct-news-update-10-23-14 …
Security forces on high alert and closing roads leading to the entrance of #Baghdad international airport.. #Iraq #ISIS
#ISIS has attempted to attack displaced #Yezidi #Kurds who are residing on #Shingal mountain, protected by #Peshmerga and Yezidi fighters.
Kurdish Lawmakers Authorize Sending #Iraq’s Peshmerga Forces to Support Kurds in #Syria http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/syria-claims-destroyed-jets-seized-26367430 …
Syria Deeply retweeted
Joel Wing retweeted
2014 Iraq resembling 2006. #ISIS killing civilians. Shi'a militias exact revenge on all Sunnis. GoI turns blind eye. http://nationalinterest.org/feature/disturbing-similarities-iraq-2006-2014-11520?page=2 …
Hayder al-Khoei retweeted
Kurds Accuse Turkish Government of Supporting #ISIS http://www.newsweek.com/2014/10/31/kurds-accuse-turkish-government-supporting-isis-278776.html?piano_d=1 … #Twitterkurds #Kobane #Syria #Turkey
Hayder al-Khoei retweeted
The 17 non-Western journalists killed by ISIS who never made the headlines, and received even less sympathy. http://www.theguardian.com/world/shortcuts/2014/oct/19/victims-of-isis-non-western-journalists-dont-make-headlines?CMP=twt_gu …
Abdulkader Hariri retweeted
The number of #Syria'n #refugees is now at 3.2 million & rising. A nation is haemorrhaging with no end in sight.
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