Islamic State Reportedly on Baghdad's Outskirts After Week of Victories

[Comrade Grumpy]

Source: Sydney Morning Herald

Irbil, Iraq: Islamic State militants have taken control of key cities in Iraq's western province of Anbar and have begun to besiege one of the country's largest military bases in a weeklong offensive that's brought them within artillery range of Baghdad.

IS, also known as ISIS, and its tribal allies have dominated Anbar since a surprise offensive last December, but this week's push was particularly worrisome, because for the first time this year Islamist insurgents were reported to have become a major presence in Abu Ghraib, the last Anbar town on the outskirts of the capital.

"Daash is openly operating inside Abu Ghraib," according to an Iraqi soldier, who used the common Arabic term for IS . "I was at the 10th Division base there two days ago, and the soldiers cannot leave or patrol," he said, asking that he be identified only as Hossam"Daash controls the streets."

<snip>

A diplomat in Irbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdistan region, said an IS presence in Abu Ghraib would put Baghdad International Airport within artillery range of the militants.

"We know they have captured substantial numbers of 155mm howitzers," said the diplomat, whose country is participating in the US-led anti-IS coalition. "These have a range of about [30 kilometres] and if they are able to hold territory in Abu Ghraib then the concern they can shell and ultimately close [the airport] becomes a grave concern."


Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/world/islamic-state-reportedly-on-baghdads-outskirts-after-week-of-victories-20141004-10q7ll.html#ixzz3FCTipgJ0

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/world/islamic-state-reportedly-on-baghdads-outskirts-after-week-of-victories-20141004-10q7ll.html

---

Not good.

[Scootaloo]

1. Isn't that kind of the opposite of what's supposed to be happening?

Maybe the president has bad maps, and thinks Baghdad is somewhere in Syria?

[ballyhoo]

2. Unlike many in here, I think you

get it, Scootaloo. Syria is the target--not ISIS, ISIL, IS, whatever. These entities are all a scam, a front, an artifice, a device...It's all a trick to take out Assad, and it will end as horribly as you can imagine.

[Scootaloo]

3. Oh, IS is very real. It's not a sham or a front, it's really a thing

Our sudden interest in "dealing with it,' however... not so much.

[ballyhoo]

5. No. It is a CIA confab, as has been written many

times. That's okay: we all have different contacts. The only thing we are doing in Syria and Iraq is recruiting volunteers for the acronyms. We will continue to fight them until the entitlement money is reduced then gone.

[The Magistrate]

8. So, Sir, You Are Seriously Maintaining The C.I.A. Directs I.S.I.L.

And moves it against Iraq in order to provide President Obama with an 'excuse' to attack Syria....

[cali]

28. evidence? I wish people like you with your CTs would provide actual evidence

I realize many of you want simple answers because it's easier for you to grasp, but sorry, it's not that simple. not close.

fail, fail, fail, fail.

[ballyhoo]

29. Why, so you can dispute that too with

more vapid dismissals. Many here have given evidence. Trouble is, the evidence is just not perfect enough for you. The URL's used to backup the evidence are just more CT sites themselves or all from freeperland (sic). IS, ISIS, ISIL just rose from nowhere in 6 months to take over 1/4 th to 1/3rd total countries. No doubt they did this selling soap and trinkets at every market from Tikrit to Aleppo. Have a nice day.

[candelista]

4. The US has been bombing near Baghdad since September 16.

The President has good maps. It's just not working.

[Scootaloo]

6. It's just not working?

How much does each bomb cost? Can't be cheap. How many have we dropped? Can't be a terribly small number. And how effective have they been? Doesn't look like they've been effective at all.

How many homeless people are in the United States? Apparently 3.5 million people experience homelessness in any given year in our nation; that's 1% of the population, which is not a small number. 50 million Americans are food-insecure, meaning they do not have a steady source of nutrition available to them.

[candelista]

22. +1.

Exactly.

[morningfog]

16. This is not a surprise to anyone, including the President. This can't be done without ground troops.

Everyone has known that form the start. It is only a question of when the administration levels with us.

[candelista]

23. Yes.

I just wonder how he's going to phrase the announcement, having promised not to send ground combat troops.

[christx30]

27. Presidents do 180s all the time.

"Read my lips. No new taxes."

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

34. Combat shoes with ankle protection (on the ground)?

[rtracey]

7. time for big boy pants

Time for Iraq to step up. time for turkey to step up, Time for Saudi Arabia to step up, Jordan, Syria, ....step up and fight ISIS. Now, its time for Obama to step up and tell Bush, Romney, Cheney, republican house, and sad too say Democrat Senate to shut the fuck up... Time for US to give all these countries 1 week....start getting your shit together or we stop the bombing....

Now time for democrats to shut the fuck up and step up... Wassermann-Schultz? where the hell are you.....Harry Reid where are you.... all the Senators not for reelection, where are you, why are you not out there helping.....you are losing time and sadly I believe the Senate.

[flamingdem]

9. Not easy to pull off, let alone in one week

The Iraqi army is plagued with corruption and incompetency. The coalition has many reasons to resist sending in troops to kill fellow Sunnis. The list goes on..

[rtracey]

10. true

point being.....U.S. OUT...

[George II]

14. I guess bush/Cheney shouldn't have done away with the Iraqi army in 2003?

[candelista]

25. That was a Leninist idea.

That the old coercive apparatus of the state has to be "smashed to bits." But this idea works differently in an invasion than in a revolution, where you already have highly motivated fighters to replace the police and soldiers.

[coldbeer]

11. Islamic State Reportedly on Baghdad's Outskirts After Week of Victories

Last edited Sat Oct 4, 2014, 05:22 PM - Edit history (1)

Scares the hell out of me! This is more important than
my medicare. I want ebola stopped. I want my grandchildren
to have jobs. I want my neighbors children to have free
meals at school. I want free college tuition.

But "Islamic State Reportedly on Baghdad's Outskirts After Week of Victories".

[amandabeech]

18. The problem is that our President may end up sending a bunch of army folks

back to Iraq to keep ISIS out of Baghdad.

War is extremely expensive, and the more we do of it, the less money there is to spend right here at home on the things that you listed and with which I agree.

[SoapBox]

12. Numbers?

Why are there never any numbers? What are we talking about...thousands, tens or hundreds, or millions?

The Impotent Media in conjunction with Blathering Military and D.C.ers...never talk about numbers.

[ballyhoo]

33. It's harder to makeup stuff when numbers are used.

[MannyGoldstein]

13. Hmmm... looks like we need Boots on the Ground™

Of course, we all tried as hard as we could to prevent this, but given that we're dealing with the most dangerous danger ever, we simply have no choice.

But let us thank God that America is exceptional. We shall prevail.

With great sadness (other than the joy from the returns on my recent MIC stock investments),

TWM

[morningfog]

17. God bless our troops and God bless America.

Anyone who has been paying attention knew is was only a question of when not if.

[malthaussen]

15. They've been "on the outskirts of Baghdad" all week.

This is like the fifth story. An hour away, two, a few miles, blah blah. 155mm howitzer has a range of about 15 miles plus or minus.

-- Mal

[Fred Sanders]

20. ^^^^^ I remember them on the outskirts of Baghdad months ago also.

[malthaussen]

21. You're a better man than I am, Fred.

I can barely remember the drivel from one day to the next. In any event, I reckon Baghdad has pretty big skirts.

-- Mal

[AnalystInParadise]

26. Actually

they have been slowly advancing and extending the encirclement. The Maliki government threw up trenches and had the Shia militias manning the trenches as a defense in depth was seen as their only possible way to slow down ISIS. But with all the Tanks and Artillery ISIS is capturing the trenches are slowly being pushed back towards Baghdad.

It was hoped the trenches and militias could buy the Iraqi Army time to refit and reorganize after losing nearly HALF its combat strength. For some reason nobody wants to admit the Iraqis suffered nearly 100,000 casualties in killed, wounded, missing and deserted in the last six months

[ballyhoo]

32. Where they are matters less than the abiding fear kept alive by

announcing position in a provocative manner. Surprises me that no one gets whats going on.

[roamer65]

19. Time for an Iranian invasion of southern Iraq.

All the way up to Baghdad.

[ballyhoo]

30. That may be part of the plan...

[Plucketeer]

24. Are we absolutely certain that Saddam is dead?

That's what we need to bring stability back to Iraq - a ruthless tyrant we can prop up. A guy with enough grit to reinstate the tribal (sectarian) checkmate that was in place prior to US going in there and spreading democracy. I'm feeling GOOD about bringing democracy to Iraq - how's bout the rest of you? And one day - when the smoke clears and the place looks like a moonscape - the few Iraqis left standing will be anxious to put together a productive congress - just like the one we have.

[ballyhoo]

31. Eww, that was good. We opened the worm can and

will never get it closed again because the worms found new friends.