|
2020-07-25 Iraq
|
|
Iraq Security Media Cell: 4 Katyusha rockets landed in Besmaya camp
|
[PUBLISH.TWITTER]
A strategic Iraqi military base, controlled by Spanish troops, south of Baghdad came under rocket attack Friday afternoon, one day before its planned handover to Iraqi forces. The rockets caused material damage, according to the Iraqi Security Media Cell.
"Four Katyusha rockets landed inside Besmaya military base this afternoon. The first one landed on a warehouse for armoured [vehicles], the second one hit the portables belonging to the regiment who protect the military base, and two other rockets landed in an empty area," read a statement from the Cell.
"According to initial reports, the rockets were launched from the al-Dainiyah region in Diyala province," the statement added.
No group has immediately grabbed credit for the attack. The Diyala area is a known hotspot for Islamic State
 ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS) holy warriors. Iraqi and Kurdish forces launched an extensive operation against ISIS in the province two weeks ago.
The rocket attack occurred on the eve of the planned handover of the base, located in southeastern Baghdad province.
Updating news hounds on the Global Coalition against ISIS operations earlier this week, Maj Gen Kenneth Ekman, Deputy Commander of the Coalition, said that Spain will hand over Besmaya military base to Iraqi Army on Saturday.
"[W]e will take another step by handing over control of the base Besmaya to the Iraqis. Spain led the coalition effort in their training of 50,000 ISF since 2015. Their work is done there," he said.
The scheduled handover was first made public in early June. "In the late summer, Spanish troops will be withdrawn from the Besmaya Range Complex, Iraq. The base is one of the Building Partner Capacity centers run by the US-led international anti-ISIS Coalition," read a Coalition statement sent to Rudaw at the time. Coalition member Spain will keep 80 military personnel in Iraq to continue their current training of Iraqi security forces.
The handover is part of the Coalition scaling back operations in Iraq. International forces have so far given control of six military bases to the Iraqi Army. Iraqi Security Forces are "quite capable" and able to conduct unilateral military operations on their own, Ekman explained in his presser. It is because of the Iraqi capabilities that international forces are able to consolidate their presence. ISIS has used this as an opportunity to increase attacks.
Asked about the frequent rocket attacks, some by carried out Iranian-backed militias, Ekman said they are a risk and the Coalition depends on their Iraqi hosts to "help create the security conditions here that allow us to continue our mission. 
|
Posted by Fred 2020-07-25 00:00||
||
Front Page|| [7 views ]
Top
File under: Islamic State
|
|
19:39 trailing wife
18:40 3dc
18:39 3dc
18:38 3dc
18:36 3dc
18:35 3dc
18:33 3dc
18:23 DooDahMan
18:21 DooDahMan
18:16 3dc
17:57 Huputle+Cherelet4131
17:53 SteveS
17:52 SteveS
17:49 lord garth
17:26 trailing wife
17:21 M. Murcek
17:17 lord garth
17:03 trailing wife
16:57 trailing wife
16:57 trailing wife
16:41 swksvolFF
16:36 swksvolFF
16:26 Skidmark
16:25 Grom the Reflective
|
