By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Impunity Watch, Managing Editor

BAGHDAD, Iraq – Iraqi forces fighting to liberate the strategic city of Tikrit from the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIS) have reportedly found that ISIS forces have booby-trapped, slowing the advance of Iraqi soldiers who have been supported by U.S airstrikes as well as Iranian fighters. “A rapid advance in a city where the ground is littered with bombs and booby-traps is too tough to achieve,” said the Tikrit Mayor Osama al-Tikriti. The use of Bobby-Traps, traps that target objects or persons with special protection under international humanitarian law or traps that are likely to attract civilians are strictly prohibited under international humanitarian law.

The security forces and Shia militias, who provided the largest number of fighters, began their offensive against ISIS on 2 March but stopped their operations temporarily after two weeks of fighting after suffering heavy casualties and tensions and seeing high tensions between the Iraqi government and with US officials over Iran’s prominent role in the fight to liberate Tikrit. Ultimately, the United States insisted on the pullback of the Iranian backed Militia as a precondition for involvement in airstrikes, General Lloyd Austin of the United States said. “Once those conditions were met – which included Shia militia not being involved – then we were able to proceed,” he told lawmakers.

Security forces said on Sunday that they were slowly advancing into Tikrit’s western area with the help of US-led airstrikes despite Shia militias boycotting the offensive. “There is some resistance from the enemy, but it’s mainly due to the booby-traps set up on the roads, in the houses, shops and government facilities,” Brigadier-General Thamer Mohamed said. “As you can see, our units are advancing and we have air support.” On Sunday, Iraqi forces attempted to clear a path through booby-trapped areas infiltrate Tikrit from the southern district of Shisheen, however the militants used anti-tank missiles to destroy a bulldozer being used by the Iraqi military create a safer path around booby-trapped roads, an official said.

Coalition airstrikes led by the United States against Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) targets in Tikrit began late last Wednesday. According to General Lloyd Austin of the United States, the Iranian-backed Shia militia in Iraq which has led an operation against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in the strategic city of Tikrit is no longer leading the operation to recapture the city. General Austin, head of United States’ Central Command, said the withdrawal was a precondition for American-led airstrikes. However, even as airstrikes open the door for Iraqi forces to enter the city these strikes do little to protect Iraqi forces and civilians from the dangers they have found in and around the booby-trapped city.

For more information please see:

Al Jazeera – Booby-Traps Halt Iraqi Forces’ Advance On Tikrit – 30 March 2015

Reuters – Booby-Traps Halt Iraqi Forces’ Advance On Tikrit – 30 March 2015

BBC News – Iraq Crisis: Tikrit Push ‘No Longer Led By Shia Militia’ – 30 March 2015

The Washington Post – U.S. Forces Begin Airstrikes In Tikrit, Where Iran-Backed Militias Are In Lead – 25 March 2015

By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Impunity Watch, Managing Editor

SANA’A, Yemen – Collation airstrikes led by Saudi Arabia continued bombing Houthi targets in Yemen a day after Yemini President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who fled the Yemini capital in February, arrived in the Saudi capital, Riyadh. Coalition targets included the Shia rebel group’s stronghold of Saada.  Yemen’s besieged government said Saudi-led airstrikes would not last long on the second day, however spokesman of the coalition announced on Thursday that the military operation against the Houthi would continue “as long as necessary.” United States Department of State Spokesperson Jeff Rathke, stated that the United States government “understands the concerns” of the Saudis and is “supportive of their effort”. According to the international human rights group Amnesty International at least six children were among 25 people killed in the air strikes in the capital city of Sana’a on Thursday. Earlier, Houthi sources reported that at least 18 people had been killed by the strikes.

The Saudi led coalition, whose members are mostly Arab Gulf States, began its campaign of airstrikes Thursday in an attempt to push back Houthi gains in Yemen, which borders Saudi Arabia on the Arabian Peninsula. President Hadi left Yemen on Thursday and is expected to attend an Arab summit meeting Shamal Shake Egypt on Saturday, where he is expected to attempt to shore up Arab support for the campaign against the rebels. In a Facebook post by President Hadi the Yemini leader urged Yemenis to be patient, saying the “rebels” would soon be gone. However, despite the air strikes, Houthi forces pushed forward in their attempt to extent control in the region south of Sana’a.

Houthi leader Abdel-Malek al-Houthi, in a televised speech, described the Saudi-led operation as a “despicable aggression.” Al-Houthi said, “What do they expect us to do, surrender, announce our defeat and act like cowards? Absolutely not. This is not how the honorable Yemeni people think. We will fight back. All 24 million Yemenis will stand united and face that despicable aggression.”

Iran, which has been accused of supporting the Houthis but denies the allegation, has condemned the airstrikes as “a dangerous step” that violated “international responsibilities and national sovereignty”. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said the coalition airstrikes amounted to “military aggression” and “condemned all military intervention in the internal affairs of independent nations.” Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who is in Switzerland participating in negations regarding the country’s nuclear program, argued that air strikes would lead only to greater loss of life. “Military action from outside of Yemen against its territorial integrity and its people will have no other result than more bloodshed and more deaths,” he told the Iran’s state-owned Al-Alam television channel.

The United Kingdom’s Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said on Friday that Saudi Arabia felt it necessary to intervene in Yemen to avoid an Iranian-backed regime taking over Yemen, which shares a border with Saudi Arabia. He said, “the Saudis are very exercised by the idea of an Iranian-backed regime in Yemen,” he told reporters during a visit to Washington. “They cannot accept the idea of an Iranian-backed regime in control of Yemen, which is why they felt compelled to intervene the way they have.” He added, “we know there has been Iranian support for the Houthi and we are all concerned to avoid this becoming a proxy war.”

For more information please see:

Al Jazeera – Coalition Jets Continue To Hit Houthi Targets In Yemen – 27 March 2015

Reuters – Britain’s Hammond: Saudis Cannot Accept Iranian-Backed Regime in Yemen – 27 March 2015

Reuters – Saudi-Led Campaign Strikes Yemen’s Sanaa, Morocco Joins Alliance – 27 March 2015

Al Jazeera – Iran Warns Of Bloodshed as Saudi-Led Forces Bomb Yemen – 26 March 2015

By Max Bartels 

Impunity Watch Reporter, The Middle East 

 

Sanna, Yemen

Saudi Arabia commenced air strikes in Yemen on Thursday in an attempt to halt the advances of the Houthi militia in Yemen. Saudi Arabia has gathered together a coalition of Arab nations to combat the Houthis, the Saudis are leading the coalition with 100 fighter jets, followed by the United Arab Emirates with 30 aircraft, 15 from Kuwait and Bahrain, 10 from Qatar and Jordan as well as naval support from Pakistan and Egypt. The coalition is made up of all Sunni nations, targeting the Iranian backed Shiite Houthi militia. The Saudis, as well as the other nations in the coalition are concerned about an Iranian run Shiite state on the Arabian Peninsula.

Iran has expressed concern over the coalition airstrikes against the Houthi militia, claiming it further complicates an already complicated situation of internal strife. The Iranian Foreign Ministry claims the coalition attack on the Houthis will allow groups like ISIS and Al Qaeda of the Arabian Peninsula to grow unchecked and take advantage of the chaos. The IranianForeign Ministry has also denied any military intervention in support of the Houthi militia. On the other hand, the U.S has expressed support for the Saudi led coalition, although Secretary of State Kerry has stated that the U.S will not intervene in the Yemen situation. The U.S supported the now deposed Saudi backed Yemeni government because of their support for the U.S drone strike campaign against Al Qaeda targets in Yemen. The U.S claims it will assist the coalition with intelligence sharing, targeting assistance and logistical support.

The Houthis have emerged as the dominant power in Yemen. The Sunni, Saudi backed Yemeni President Hadi was removed from power in January by the Houthis, since then the country has been in a state of chaos with differnet factions vying for power. The Saudis claim that their military operations are in support of Hadi and the legitimately elected government of Yemen. In support of these operations the Saudis have deployed 150,000 Saudi troops at the Yemen border in case a ground offense is undertaken against the Houthi militia. The Houthis claim that the coalition airstrikes into Yemen only serve to unite the people of Yemen to the Houthi cause. There is little the Houthi forces can do in response to persistent airstrikes but the militia claims that if Saudi ground forces invade they will be repulsed.

For more information, please see:

The Washington Post — Saudi Arabia Launches Airstrikes in Yemen — 25 March, 2015 

Reuters — Saudi Arabia Leads Airstrikes Against Yemen’s Houthi Rebels — 26 March, 2015

CNBC — Saudi Arabia, Allies Launch Airstrikes in Yemen Against Houthi Fighters — 26 March, 2015

CNN — Saudi – Led Coalition Strikes Houthi Rebels in Yemen — 26 March, 2015

By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Impunity Watch, Managing Editor

BAGHDAD, Iraq – Iraqi forces and militias have pushed into former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s home city of Tikrit on Wednesday, advancing from the north and south. The fight is part of their largest counter-offensive so far against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS). If the Iraqi government is able to regain control of the oil rich city of Tikrit it would be the first time Iraqi forces have reclaimed a major city from ISIS forces and would likely pave the way for the liberation of Mosul, the largest city in ISIS hands.

Army and militia fighters reportedly captured part of Tikrit’s northern Qadisiya district, the provincial governor said, a security officer reported that forces have also made an advance from the south making a rapid push toward the center of the city. “The forces entered Tikrit general hospital,” an official at the main military operation command center said. “There is heavy fighting going on near the presidential palaces, next to the hospital complex.”

North of the city of Tikrit, Kurdish Peshmerga forces have intensified their offensive against ISIS forces, pushing back the militants south and west of Kirkuk while with the support of airstrikes launched by the United States and coalition forces. The Kurds also took control of a key route from Kirkuk to the ISIS stronghold of Mosul, the largest city in Northern Iraq, according to Kurdish officials. As ISIS retreated towards Hawija, residents reported ISIS militants killed some of their own members who had tried to flee the fighting.

In what may be retaliation for the efforts to liberate Tikrit ISIS forces have reportedly launched 13 suicide car attacks in the provincial capital of Ramadi, located 55 miles from Baghdad, in the ISIS stronghold, Anbar providence. The cars were used to attack security and military forces in the city. The death toll from the attacks was not immediately clear but a medical official reported at least give people were killed in the attacks.  One of the car bombs was detonated near a bridge in the west of the city which borders the Tigris River, damaging at least part of the bridge, a police source said.

While the attempted liberation of Tikrit marks a major milestone in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant which has pillaged the region, murdering and raping civilians and destroying priceless cultural sites, some have expressed concern that Iraqi forces may seek to take revenge on the Sunni residents in and around Tikrit, as was reported with earlier militia victories in Diyala province. Camp Speicher, near the city of Tikrit, was the site of the massacre more than 1,000 Shi’ite soldiers by ISIS militants. Shi’ite clerics have called on the militias to act with restraint,

For more information please see:

The Boston Globe – Iraqi Forces Seize Large Parts of Tikrit from Islamic State – 11 March 2015

CNN International – Iraqi Forces Take Military Hospital from ISIS as Tikrit Offensive Continues – 11 March

National Public Radio – Iraqi Forces Reportedly Enter Tikrit in Push against ISIS – 11 March 2015

Reuters – Iraqi Forces Push Into Tikrit, Bombers Hit Ramadi – 11 March 2015