“Planes and command positions — all of them have fallen in addition to weapons caches. Also prisons were stormed and criminals have been set free. What happened is a catastrophe by any measure.” It’s a good thing that, as Barack Obama assures us, al Qaeda is on the ropes. Imagine what they’d be doing if they were a strong and vibrant force. “Islamic Militants Take Control Of Iraq’s Mosul,” RFE/RL, June 10, 2014:
Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki is asking parliament to declare a state of emergency after Al-Qaeda-linked militants seized control of one of the largest cities in the country.
State TV said parliament will convene on June 12 to discuss the request.
Fighters believed to be affiliated with the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) seized key buildings in the northern city of Mosul late on June 9.
Officials said dozens of heavily armed insurgents seized the provincial capital’s headquarters, occupied police stations, overran the airport, and freed prisoners from jails.
The governor of the northern province of Nineveh, Athil al-Nujaifi, said the military and police forces abandoned their positions.
Residents were quoted as saying that black flags associated with jihadist groups were flying from buildings and that the militants had announced over loudspeakers that they had come to “liberate” the city of nearly 2 million people.
Earlier on June 9, Governor Nujaifi made a televised plea to the city’s inhabitants to fight the Al-Qaeda-linked militants who have been regaining ground in Iraq.
Nujaifi escaped Mosul unharmed before the provincial government’s headquarters fell.
His brother, parliament speaker Osama al-Nujaifi, called on the Iraqi government and the regional government of Kurdistan to send reinforcements to Mosul. He also said he had asked the U.S. ambassador for help.
“When battles intensified inside the city of Mosul, the [Iraqi] forces abandoned their weapons and the commanders fled, leaving behind weapons and armored vehicles — their positions were easy prey for terrorists, even the Mosul airport,” parliament speaker Nujaifi said in Baghdad.
“Planes and command positions — all of them have fallen in addition to weapons caches. Also prisons were stormed and criminals have been set free. What happened is a catastrophe by any measure.”
Tens Of Thousands Flee Fighting
The president of the semiautonomous northern Kurdistan region, Masud Barzani, called on international organizations to provide humanitarian assistance.
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the UN chief is “gravely concerned” by the serious deterioration of the security situation in Mosul.
U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki also voiced concern over what she called the “extremely serious situation” in Mosul.
RFE/RL correspondents in Iraq report that the fighting has forced thousands of people to flee their homes to other parts of the province and beyond.
joeb says
Cheer up, Robert.
Barry says Al Qaeda are on the ropes, finished, so this mustn’t be true…those people must be imagining it.
Transmaster says
Well they are remember Muhammad Ali’s Ropa-Dope, The Sultan of Clueless know exactly what he is doing.
David Barrett says
Isaiah 49 vs23-26
Steven Buckley says
It’s all gearing up for an almighty Sunni/Shia confrontation throughout the Middle East. This is a good thing, provided all non-muslims are out of the region. Already muslims killing muslims in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, look at the next possibility:
http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/4343/iran-egypt
Dar-al-Islam= Land of War
Dar-al-Harb= Land of Peace.
Islam is finally being turned on its head.
mariam rove says
Indeed it is great news!!! M
joeb says
What’s not to like, frankly?
Joking aside, I’m afraid we will be drawn into this, properly. Not just CIA training camps and arms supplies.
gravenimage says
Steven Buckley wrote:
It’s all gearing up for an almighty Sunni/Shia confrontation throughout the Middle East. This is a good thing, provided all non-muslims are out of the region. Already muslims killing muslims in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon…
………………………….
Unfortunately, all non-Muslims are *not* out of the region. Many Christians had fled other parts of Iraq for the somewhat-safer-at-the-time Kurdish north-west, including Mosul.
And other Christians had fled Iraq altogether for some-what-safer-at-the-time Syria, which is now also fully engulfed in violent Jihad.
In fact, Syria had one of the largest remaining populations of Christians, and Lebanon was actually *majority* Christian not so long ago.
The lucky ones are able to flee—but unless the can get out of the region altogether (with the obvious exception of Israel), there are simply few places they can go.
The rest face crushing oppression, threat, and out-and-out mass murder—essentially genocide. That is not a word I use lightly—but it is the only one apt here.
Kepha says
To think that the “incompetent” Bush administration had Iraqi Kurdistan relatively quiet with only about 300 pairs of American boots on the ground.
Uri says
Hey Bush-
How’s that Iraq invasion working out?
Miss Saddam yet?
Rezali Mehil says
Although much to your delight ….this is shameful
1) It is Bush who really has blood on his hands…
2) All the weapons that the sunni have …they have been given by You….so don’t say it has nothing to do with you.
3) It really hurts me that Samarra is has been attacked…. I have been there on pilgrimage as a child …the atmosphere was electric with holiness…now it will only be “grimage.”
4) America has only ever supported the sunni – you gotta know that these people are not educated – they cannot read/write – we are the true Islam…we wouldn’t do this.
5) Interesting that now that America has lit the match …they will be standing back …no military involvement …well good …the clever ones will win…shia will rise …this is shia country …all you need to do is stay away and don’t get involved and don’t supply those damn sunni.
More Later ….
Rezali
Uri says
Shia smell like shit
terry says
Can send this moron and all the radical preaching Imams back where they came from? Please.
Petey says
as long as the stupid bastards are killing each other, were ok with it. Better muslims in shitholistan then here in the promised land
gravenimage says
Rezali Mehil wrote:
Although much to your delight ….this is shameful
……………………………….
What crap—these are the bloody actions of your own savage coreligionists—other-sect or not.
More:
1) It is Bush who really has blood on his hands…
2) All the weapons that the sunni have …they have been given by You….so don’t say it has nothing to do with you.
……………………………….
What rot—these were seized by Jihadists when your own fellow Shi’ites fled in droves.
But this should come as no surprise—what pious Muslim ever really wants to oppose Jihad?
More:
3) It really hurts me that Samarra is has been attacked…. I have been there on pilgrimage as a child …the atmosphere was electric with holiness…now it will only be “grimage.”
……………………………….
Why would a Muslim object to death in Samarra? She would, no doubt, be perfectly happy if the streets were lined with the heads of Sunnis rather than Shi’ites…
More:
4) America has only ever supported the sunni – you gotta know that these people are not educated – they cannot read/write – we are the true Islam…we wouldn’t do this.
……………………………….
What rot—our inadvertently handing Iraq over to the Shi’ites wasn’t enough—we should continue spending our own blood and treasure in order to keep it for them—even though the Shia themselves constantly complained until we left.
And the Shia are just as brutal as are their Sunni coreligionists.
More:
5) Interesting that now that America has lit the match …they will be standing back …no military involvement …well good …the clever ones will win…shia will rise …this is shia country …all you need to do is stay away and don’t get involved and don’t supply those damn sunni.
……………………………….
Americans didn’t light any match—really, Sunnis and Shia were bloodily slaughtering each other for over a thousand years before the United States even existed.
The odd thing, of course, is that pious Shia like Rezali Mehil want to see the full triumph of Islam in the West, as well—even though, statistically, that would almost certainly mean Sunni supremacy and the further slaughter of her own fellow Shia.
But ultimately, what do pious Muslims care? After all, Islam trumps *everything* for them…
David, Thailand says
Can’t be Al-Qaeda; the America-hating, white-hating, Jew-hating Muslim Socialist in the White House said they’re all but vanquished.
Salah says
He is lying, they are running the White House!
King Dave says
It isn’t all liberals and progressives who ignore and defend Islamic violence. It is merely however and quite frankly, just the dumb ones.
Of course many will blame the US overthrow of psychopathic mass murderer, international war criminal and dictator Saddam Hussein.
More than a decade later, Iraqis have rejected civilian rule in favor of settling their ethnic and religious differences in a bloody and hostile Islamic Holy War
This should alarm even the most impartial liberal apologists, but because they are separated by thousands of miles of water and hundreds of miles of sand, the Iraqis barely register as a footnote in History
Charli Main says
Standby for another invasion of ” poor Muslim refugees” and “poor Muslim asylum seekers”. None of whom will be wanting to live with their Muslim brothers in the perfect Islamic paradises of the mega rich Gulf States.
No, its off to Europe, USA, Canada and Australia we go !!!!!!
and of course, as soon as we get there, we will do every thing we can to turn it into a copy of the shit hole we ran away from.
PRACTICAL ISLAM 101.
Tommo says
The Taliban are on the ropes but being replaced by an even more dangerous Islamic terrorist group in ISIL who have already taken over one third of Iraq and some of Syria. Refugees are arriving in Kurdistan in their hundreds from both areas of intense conflict. ISIL plan to establish a caliphate in Iraq and launch attacks on America.
SpiritOf1683 says
I’m afraid the Taliban aren’t on the ropes if the evidence in Pakistan and Afghanistan is anything to go by. The Jihad is on the up, in Nigeria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. To the naked eye, it looks as if they’re definately winning hands down.
gravenimage says
With all respect, Tommo, how are the Taliban “on the ropes”? Just days ago they just brazenly attacked *Pakistan’s largest airport*, and are poised to retake Afghanistan as soon as we pull out.
They appear to be “on the ropes” in much that same way that Al Qaida is—which is to say, not much at all.
“Pakistan: Islamic jihadists murder 27 as they take over the nation’s busiest airport”
http://www.jihadwatch.org/2014/06/pakistan-islamic-jihadists-murder-27-as-they-take-over-the-nations-busiest-airport
pongidae rex says
I’d like to see a dollar figure for what this nation has squandered ‘training and equipping ‘ the Iraqi Army to throw down their uniforms and equipment and run like rabbits at the first sound of gunfire.
Jay Boo says
Tens Of Thousands Flee Fighting
Muslims don’t ‘steal’ what does not belong to them.
That is why they have Quran verses to take (in the name of Allah) what does not belong to them.
Will the Sunnis reoccupy the homes and land that they originally stole from the Kurdish people during rule of Saddam?
Jay Boo says
That plan of helping border crossing Syrian ‘freedom fighters’ must be looking a bit worn at the seams even to the DC liberal elite.
Aren’t these the same guys that were crossing the border to attack American troops in Iraq?
SpiritOf1683 says
“When battles intensified inside the city of Mosul, the [Iraqi] forces abandoned their weapons and the commanders fled, leaving behind weapons and armored vehicles — their positions were easy prey for terrorists, even the Mosul airport,” parliament speaker Nujaifi said in Baghdad.
Given that background, is there little wonder the Israelis saw the Iraqi forces as the poorest they faced in 1967 and 1973.
At least the Shia aren’t going to take this lying down.
dumbledoresarmy says
From the article – “…black flags associated with jihadist groups were flying from buildings…”.
They are flying the Black Flag of Jihad, the traditional black flag inscribed with the shahada or Supremacy Boast/ Threat of Islam that has been flown for 1400 years by all mohammedan mobsters and allah-gangsters carrying out murderous pillage-and-lay-waste raids.
That black flag with its white arabic lettering should be a worldwide symbol of monstrous Evil even more instantly recognisable – and more universally and instantly detested and rejected – than the Swastika of Nazism.
Petey says
Funny how muslims flee in the thousands when a muslim army “LIBERATES” them from a government set up by infidels????