Hawija, IS's alternative base, threat to Kirkuk
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan24) – As the US-backed Iraqi forces advance to retake the Islamic State (IS)-occupied city of Mosul, the extremists move their military leadership to western Kirkuk’s Hawija district, posing a threat to Kirkuk.
Ahmed Khurshid, a member of Hawija District Council revealed to Kurdistan24 that IS extremists have moved their main headquarter from Mosul to Hawija as they are on the verge of defeat in one of their major strongholds in Iraq.
Khurshid, who says he is in daily contact with some of the residents in Hawija, claimed that the number of IS extremists in the city are increasing.
“Many IS fighters have claimed Makhul and Fatha mountain areas as their safe-haven, establishing new bases and front lines to repel potential attacks by the Peshmerga forces and the Iraqi army in future offensives,” the Kurdish official told Kurdistan24.
According to the Peshmerga commanders in Kirkuk, this alternative base will be used for new offensives against Kurdistan Region’s Peshmerga forces in Kirkuk and surrounding areas and against the Iraqi forces in Nineveh and Salahadin provinces.
In a month, IS extremists have launched five attacks from Hawija against Peshmerga forces in southern Kirkuk and one major attack on Iraqi forces in Shirgat, southern Mosul.
Brigadier Hussein Blok, a Peshmerga commander in Khurmatu frontlines spoke to Kurdistan24 about the latest IS attack on June 20, stating that IS brought most of its forces to Hawija and Hamrin mountain area allowing them to attack Kurdish frontlines more frequently.
The commander emphasized that Peshmerga forces are always ready to repel IS attacks but warned that the extremists have increased their movements in the area.
He added that although Peshmerga forces are ready to confront IS in Hawija, Iraqi forces keep delaying the operation despite the imminent threat to Peshmerga and Iraqi forces.
Colonel Hemin Hassan, a commander in Peshmerga’s 1st brigade told Kurdistan24 that Peshmerga forces have expressed readiness for Hawija liberation operation four times to assist the Iraqi forces for an anti-IS operation in Hawija but the Iraqi side has not been responsive.
On June 10, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced that operations to liberate Hawija and Tal Afar from IS would start soon.
However, in his first visit to Kirkuk in October 2016, Abadi promised that the security forces would soon liberate Hawija IS.
Hawija is one of IS’ strongholds in Iraq. The city has been under the control of the insurgent group since June 2014, where the extremist group currently control nearly 250,000 civilians in the city and surrounding areas.
Editing by Ava Homa