Clearly the Islamic State is reeling from Obama’s airstrikes. “ISIS Overruns Iraqi Army Base Near Baghdad, Executes 300 Soldiers,” by Christopher Harress, International Business Times, September 25, 2014 (thanks to Pamela Geller):
Militants from ISIS have overrun an Iraqi military base near Baghdad and executed 300 soldiers, according to a breaking news report from CNN.
While details of the exact location outside Baghdad are unavailable, the news comes after ISIS has been weakened by U.S. airstrikes in the north of the country. It now appears that the group has made gains in the central belt of the country and has an eye fixed on the nation’s capital, which it attacked a few days ago as well.
BREAKING: ISIS overruns Iraqi Army base near Baghdad; reports that up to 300 Iraqi soldiers have been executed – @CNN
— NewsBreaker (@NewsBreaker) September 25, 2014
Over the past few weeks, ISIS fighters in the north of Iraq and more recently in the west of Syria have been bombarded by U.S.-led strikes. Strikes in Syria from the U.S. Air Force, Navy and allies, plus Tomahawk missiles, disabled much of the militants’ infrastructure and also hit their income-generating oil wells.
United States President Barack Obama expects the campaign in Syria and Iraq against ISIS to last up to three years. The campaign may cost as much as $10 billion.
Don McKellar says
I saw a live report on CNN along the Turkish border where ISIS was fighting Kurds across some hilltops. It went on for HOURS and there were repeated calls for airstrikes to help. The CNN reporter(s) were dumbfounded as to why no airstrikes arrived. Did anybody see that?
Bahgdad will fall. It is surrounded by Sunni towns who all back and support ISIS. The Iraq shi’ite Iraq army is a big joke, just like it was during the Iraq war. They are gutless cowards, throwing down their weapons and embracing their deaths.
These airstrikes are almost as big a joke as watching the used car salesman John Kerry spew his garbage about how ISIS is not Islam!
Beagle says
Good points, Don.
Islam creates over a hundred thousand refugees an average week at present. Boko Haram created 200,000 recently in one attack and it barely caused a ripple in the media. This Kurdish story you rightly think is important, more six figure refugees resulted from the initial attack, has been overwhelmed by comparatively trivial news.
I have seen no signs the Shia forces can defend the thousands of US citizens in Baghdad. This could make the 1979 hostage crisis look like a frat party. Not a prediction as I don’t know the order of battle around Baghdad or what surprises either side may have in store for the other.
Yes, we’re fighting another mostly phoney war, like the Brits and French in 1939.
thomas says
No Beagle Don McKellar , yes the Iraqi army is a joke! but the Shiite militias are not , they are fanatics to Hassan Hussein and Ali and they will fight!
Gail Griffin says
Yes straffing! What happened to the use of straffing those sob’s? It was a method of perfection for what we have been seeing around Kobani. Not a million dollar bomb but lots of cheaper bullets. Maybe Hollywood has some retro planes we could borrow. What were they called?
An Unhappy Camper says
AI have to agree with you about the Shiite militias (They will fight). I just see no upside for IS to try and take Bagdad. Urban fighting is much more complex than running around the desert in a pickup truck. I think if anything they’ll try and put Bagdad under some sort of siege. Bagdad is massive and cutting it off would a large undertaking.
Paul L says
Weird is it not? The Iraqi army know what is in store for them if they are captured so why aren’t they fighting to an honourable death rather than submitting to their savage coreligionists?
Shane says
I saw that report on Fox news. It appears that these bombings are mostly for show as the air forces in the coalition are not coordinating with ground troops. Obama does not have the guts to do what it takes to destroy IS.
RaymondofCanada says
If U.S. really wanted to make a difference and be on the side of civilized people, it would help the Kurds. Maybe then threatened Christians could be brought there and with the billions of dollars spent supporting one devil against another going to help their settlement among the Kurds, they would be able to defend themselves in time against barbarians.
Peter Buckley says
“While details of the exact location outside Baghdad are unavailable, the news comes after ISIS has been weakened by U.S. airstrikes in the north of the country. It now appears that the group has made gains in the central belt of the country and has an eye fixed on the nation’s capital, which it attacked a few days ago as well.”
It’s panning out perfectly. Stop them going north and West (Israel), but let them march on Baghdad. Iran is weakened by the conflict. The West shouldn’t prop up the Iraqi government, but no doubt it will. In other words, the war is going well DESPITE the West.
Jack Holan says
You can’t win a war by air power alone. Obama wants to keep his hands nice and clean (no boots on the ground) and without infantry, Artillery and the armored corp he will lose and blame it on some one
Peter Buckley says
The West doesn’t have to “win” this one- just set Sunnis against Shias and control it from the skies.
PRCS says
You must have been watching Michael Scheuer on Fox News this morning. When asked by the interviewer (Uma Pemmaraju) “what should we do, just give up?”, he responded (paraphrasing here) “Let them kill each other”.
His point being that warfare, on our part, must be to protect the U.S.. Not to protect other nations.
I’d like to agree with him, but what about the treaties we’ve signed?
Wolfenberry says
I’m confused– the article says “CNN breaking news” but the date is “25 September”…. today is 27/28 September… there is nothing about this on CNN nor anywhere else. What gives? Is this an old story?
Soloview says
This appears to be a duplicated report of ISIS seizing the army base at Anbar near Fallujah, four days ago.
David says
It’s really not that complex. The Sunni tribes are going to back what they believe will be the winning side. If the U.S. doesn’t look like we have the will to win, they are going to back the Islamic States. It’s not a matter of political philosophy.
mortimer says
The Gulf states are the only ones who can successfully infiltrate ISIS since the leaders are Arabians. This is delicious to see the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia hunting their Frankenstein’s monster and trying to kill it! The trap they laid for the world is coming back to destroy the Fathers of Jihadism…THE HOUSE OF SAUD.
Jay Boo says
I do not know who first came up with the term but
Islam is a ‘Franken-religion’.
mawskrat says
and followers of islam are Koranimals
Charli Main says
Given the ISIS track record in dealing with captured soldiers, I would of thought that the Kurds and Shias would have figured out that surrendering is not a option.
ISIS don´t fight by the laws of the Geneva Convention. The fight by the laws of the insane psychopath, Mohammed of Islam
duh_swami says
What’s going to happen when ISIS captures one or more American military ‘advisers’? I hope those guys are getting hazard duty pay…
SpiritOf1683 says
Or a pair of pistols, 100 rounds of ammunition and a cyanide capsule.
Fernando says
Given Obama’s rules of engagement, only the cyanide pill can be legally used.
SpiritOf1683 says
How true! That pill will spare them being captured by ISIS, followed by torture before being beheaded, or facing a jury of 12 should they have the temerity to fight back successfully and survive.
RichardL says
I thought I’d share an interesting poll done by al-Hayat in Sowdi-Barbaria: 92% of those polled said that IS is following the tenets of islam. Very annoying for Hussein Obama because now SA has nothing to do with islam…
http://defence.pk/threads/92-of-saudi%E2%80%99s-believe-that-%E2%80%9Cisis-conforms-to-the-values-of-islam-and-islamic-law%E2%80%9D-%E2%80%93-poll.333473/
or google “al Hayat 92% Saudi Arabia”
Angemon says
http://www.jihadwatch.org/2014/08/poll-92-of-saudis-believe-that-islamic-state-conforms-to-the-values-of-islam-and-islamic-law
🙂
Fernando says
Now now, be nice. These are America’s top designated surrogate “boots on the ground”, don’t you know?
They have after all, been trained by the best for the last 10+ years. They have been given the very best equipment – there are 200000 of them! And still …..
Why not just let them kill each other and then take on whichever is left standing … Just saying!
fair_dinkum says
iraq has stated it doesnt want allied troops on the ground.
but their military is disintegrating it seems.
but if they do re group, get organised and fight back, the same sorts of atrocities will occur.
in fact, id say their organised ground troops and our air support..could really smash IS
SpiritOf1683 says
The fightback will only begin in non-Kurdish Iraq when ISIS encroach on cities like Najaf, and face the Mehdi Army.
Ger says
If you want the IS militants to retreat from all the territories they seized, Iraq or the US must create an army of women.
because these militants fear that if they were killed by women, they will not go to paradise anymore where 72 virgins await for them to have sex with eternally LOL
SpiritOf1683 says
Not only is that 300 dead Iraqi soldiers with another 200 unaccounted for, that is also another treasure trove of tanks, artillery pieces, mortars, stingers, machine guns, assault rifles, tons of ammunition, night-fighting goggles, plus invaluable information documents all falling into ISIS hands.
fred says
the people on this post, share the same religious hatred that ISIS’s has. Actually worse.
Rainman says
Isis and Al Qaeda have figured out the drones and air wars. Every step they take they are surrounded by human shields. I’m sure it’s cost effective blowing up $500 Chevy Luvs with million dollar missiles. Or empty buildings. Obama called Jordon and Iran and Syria to tell them the strike was coming. I’m sure no one dropped a dime on Obama, huh.
Rainman…..
tpellow says
“Obama: ‘We underestimated the threat posed by Islamic State’ ”
– See more at: http://www.independent.ie/world-news/americas/obama-we-underestimated-the-threat-posed-by-islamic-state-30622921.html?#sthash.Q9qDqxA4.dpuf
Also true of Obama:-
‘We underestimated the threat posed by Islamic jihadists globally -and still do.’
Dave J says
It is a hopeless and useless battle. We should announce that and retreat to work on our own problems, primarily to develop and install renewable alternatives to oil. There is more potential there than in trying to solve other people’s centuries old religious squabbles.
The primacy of oil and other fossil fuels is both feeding war and destroying our climate. We should be fighting a war that we might actually win and let the religious psychopaths reduce themselves to dust.
Chris says
The Christians want to fight. But, the U.S. government won’t arm them.
https://www.change.org/p/united-states-congress-arm-the-indigenous-christians-and-grant-them-their-ancestral-land-of-the-nineveh-province-before-they-face-extinction