THE FORGOTTEN WARS IN AFGHANISTAN/IRAQ

CIVILIANS FLEEING RAMADI, IRAQ AS ISIS TAKES OVER

News From Afghanistan

05/27/15 KP: Airstrike target Taliban gathering in Kandahar, leaving 35 dead At least 35 Taliban insurgents were killed and 40 others were injured following an airstrike in southern Kandahar province of Afghanistan. The provincial government media office confirmed that the militants were killed in Shorabak district in Badi Ghondi area – in an operation led by Gen. Abdul Raziq.

05/27/15 AP: Afghanistan's first lady breaks taboos Afghanistan's first lady has broken numerous conventions in a society that traditionally sequesters women behind closed doors - speaking out on issues such as violence against women, the rule of law and the power of religion. But perhaps Rula Ghani's biggest taboo breaker is simply being the country's first presidential spouse in decades to be seen and heard in public.

05/27/15 WaPo: Afghan forces repel guest house attack as residents cower in fear Afghan President Ashraf Ghani praised security forces on Wednesday for repelling a Taliban assault on a Kabul guesthouse, which sparked a six-hour gun battle that kept nearby residents cowering until dawn.

05/27/15 AP: 4 Taliban die in attack in Afghan capital An all-night siege in an upscale neighborhood of the Afghan capital, Kabul, ended in the early hours of Wednesday morning with the deaths of four heavily armed Taliban attackers, though no civilians or security personnel were injured or killed, an Afghan official said.

05/26/15 cbsnews: Deadly Taliban siege continues in Afghanistan Taliban gunmen surrounded a police compound in the volatile southern province of Helmand after killing 19 policemen and seven soldiers in an ongoing siege, a senior police officer said on Monday from inside the compound.

05/26/15 BBC: Gunfire and explosions hit Kabul's diplomatic district Heavy gunfire and a series of explosions have been reported in a diplomatic area of the Afghan capital, Kabul. At least a dozen explosions were heard in one hour in the Wazir Akbar Khan district, that is home to several embassies and government buildings. A spokesman for Kabul's police told AFP news agency that a guest house in the district was believed to be the target. No group has said it carried out the attack.

05/25/15 KP: 68 people wounded in Zabul suicide attack 68 people have been wounded in a suicide attack in restive Zabul province, hospital sources confirmed on Monday. Haji Ata Jan Haqbayan, head of the provincial council of Zabul province said that a suicide attacker riding in an explosives-laden truck carried out a huge explosion in front of the front gate of the compound of provincial council around 11:00 AM this morning.

05/25/15 KP: Suicide bombers launch attack in Kandahar city A group of suicide bombers launched coordinated suicide attack in Kandahar city in southern part of the country. The attack was reportedly launched around 8 pm local time with security officials saying at least two suicide bombers are currently engaged in gun battle with the security forces.

05/25/15 KP: Daish-Taliban clash left at least 20 killed in Farah A clash between the fighters of the Islamic State or Daish and Taliban left 20 killed from both sides in western Farah province. Hanif Razai, spokesman for Afghan National Army in Farah province says that gunmen belonging to Daish and Taliban are fighting in Sarkhash Mazar area of Khak-i-Safid District since last night.

05/25/15 Pajhwok: 2 gunmen firing from Kandahar building Two gunmen holed up a building were firing at security forces in the capital of southern Kandahar province on Monday night, an official said. The governor’s spokesman, Samim Khpalwak, told Pajhwok Afghan News the gunmen had been trading fire with police since 8:30pm in the limits of the fourth police district in Darul Uloom area.

05/25/15 AP: 19 police, 7 soldiers killed as Taliban seal off Afghan post Taliban gunmen surrounded a police compound in the volatile southern province of Helmand after killing 19 police officers and seven soldiers in an ongoing siege, a senior police officer said Monday from inside the compound. Napas Khan, the police chief in the Naw Zad district, said by telephone that the insurgents had advanced to within 65 feet of the compound after seizing police vehicles and weapons and blocking all roads out of Naw Zad.

05/25/15 DoD: Army Casualty Identified The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Freedom's Sentinel. Sgt. 1st Class Pablo A. Ruiz, 37, of Melbourne, Florida, died May 24, in Bagram, Afghanistan, from a non-combat related incident. He was assigned to Group Support Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group, Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

News From Iraq

05/27/15 dpa: Iraq claims progress in anti-Islamic State offensive in Anbar Iraqi forces recaptured towns from Islamic State fighters near militant-held Ramadi on Wednesday, a day after the government started an offensive to drive the jihadist militia out of Anbar province, of which Ramadi is the capital, a security official said.

05/27/15 telegraph: Video shows militia fighters' attack on key Islamic State-held oil refinery Iraqi military operations to retake the contested Baiji oil refinery were underway on Wednesday. Shia militia, known as Popular Mobilisation Units, were filmed firing rifles and rockets at alleged Islamic State (Isil) group positions in the area.

05/27/15 AP: ISIS Suicide Attacks Against Iraqi Army Kill 17 Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) extremists unleashed a wave of suicide attacks targeting the Iraqi army in western Anbar province, killing at least 17 troops in a major blow to government efforts to dislodge the militants from the sprawling Sunni heartland, an Iraqi military spokesman said Wednesday.

05/27/15 CNN: Iraqi forces, ISIS militants clash in Anbar operation ISIS militants killed 30 Iraqi soldiers in a suicide bomb attack in Iraq's key Anbar province, security officials told CNN on Wednesday, a day after the launch of a major operation to liberate Anbar and Salaheddin provinces from ISIS.

05/25/15 RFE/RL: Iraqi Forces Advance On IS-Controlled Ramadi Iraqi government forces aided by Shi'ite militias and Sunni tribal fighters have retaken ground lost a week ago to Islamic State (IS) militants and are continuing to advance toward the western Iraqi city of Ramadi.

05/25/15 IraqiNews: Iraqi forces destroy secret ISIS camp in northeast of Baqubah On Monday, Diyali Police Command announced, that the security forces had managed to destroy a secret military camp belonging to ISIS in northeast of Baqubah, noting that the camp contained a cemetery for top ISIS leaders and elements.

05/25/15 IraqiNews: 6000 components of Iraqi forces collapsed in front of 150 ISIS in Ramadi The former adviser to U.S. Central Command, Ali al-Khedery announced that he has information indicating to the collapse of six thousand elements of the Iraqi forces in front of 150 ISIS fighters in Ramadi, Anbar province.

05/25/15 IBTimes: What Happened In Ramadi? Sunni Iraqi Deputy Contradicts Shiite Prime Minister Abadi, Echoing Carter And Adding Fuel To The Fire When a key provincial capital in western Iraq fell to the Islamic State group on May 17, it wasn't because it had roundly beaten the government forces stationed there. Rather, those forces retreated in what was a major surprise move, Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Saleh al-Mutlaq told CNN Monday, stoking the flames of an ongoing controversy over why Iraq lost the city over a week ago to the militant group also known as ISIS.

05/25/15 WaPo: Gen. Dempsey’s first fight in Iraq shapes his approach to Islamic State In the summer of 2014, President Obama and his senior aides were scrambling to respond to the lightning advance of Islamic State fighters across Iraq and the collapse of local forces in the face of the onslaught. Gen. Martin Dempsey, Obama’s top military adviser, recommended sending U.S. Special Forces troops to take stock of the situation. But Dempsey, unlike other aides who favored an immediate offensive response, also made a case for restraint, arguing that American air power should be unleashed in earnest only after the Iraqis struck a political agreement that would unify the country’s fractious leaders.

05/25/15 AFP: Fighting rages with Ramadi in balance ISIS poured more fighters into Ramadi as security forces and Shia paramilitaries prepared to retake the Iraqi city that fell to the Islamists a week ago in a major setback for the government. In Palmyra, the Syrian Air Force struck at buildings captured by the Sunni militant group, whose arrival has raised fears that the city’s famed Roman ruins will be destroyed.

05/24/15 Reuters: Shiite Fighters Advance on ISIS Millitants in Ramadi, Iraq Shi'ite Muslim militiamen and Iraqi army forces launched a counter-offensive against the so-called Islamic State insurgents near Ramadi on Saturday, a militia spokesman said, aiming to reverse potentially devastating gains by the fake jihadi militants. The fall of Ramadi, the Anbar provincial capital, to the so-called Islamic State on May 17 could be a shattering blow to Baghdad's weak central government. The fake jihadis now control most of Anbar and could threaten the western approaches to Baghdad, or even surge south into Iraq's Shi’ite heartland.

05/24/15 IraqiNews: ISIS attacks Assad base and al-Baghdadi complex using car bombs on Sunday, Iraqi troops and tribal fighters rebelled two ISIS attacks on the residential complex in al-Baghdadi district and al-Assad base west of Ramadi, using 5 car bombs.

05/24/15 the news: Iraqi forces retake Ramadi from IS Iraqi forces retook territory from the Islamic State group east of Ramadi on Saturday, commanders said, in their first counterattack since the Jihadists’ capture of the Anbar provincial capital last week. The UN Security Council, meanwhile, condemned the deadly suicide bombing of a mosque claimed by IS and called for the group to be defeated.

05/24/15 Agencies: Iraqi troops lack will to fight Washington Sunday accused Iraqi forces of lacking the will to fight ISIS militants who scored a resounding victory a week earlier with the capture of Ramadi. The loss of Ramadi, capital of Iraq’s largest province of Anbar, raised questions over the strategy adopted not only by Baghdad but also by Washington to tackle ISIS.

05/24/15 ninemsn : Largest oil refinery in Iraq up in flames A wall of orange flames and plumes of black smoke billow into the night sky as a fire at a key Iraqi oil refinery rages. Video of the massive blaze at the Baiji refinery was released on Sunday by Aamaq News Agency and follows days of intense fighting between Iraqi troops and IS forces.

05/23/15 afp: Iraqi forces reclaim territory captured by Islamic State east of Ramadi, military officials say Iraqi forces retake territory from the Islamic State jihadist group east of Ramadi, in their first counterattack since Anbar's provincial capital fell a week ago, commanders say. Iraqi forces have retaken territory from the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group east of Ramadi, commanders say, in their first counterattack since Anbar's provincial capital fell a week ago.

05/23/15 ibtimes: Shiite Militias Deploy To Take On Islamic State Insurgents Near Iraq's Ramadi x`A convoy of Shiite Muslim militia and Iraqi army forces set out from a base near Ramadi on Saturday to advance on areas held by Islamic State, a Shiite spokesman said, launching a counter-offensive to reverse stunning gains by the jihadi insurgents.

05/23/15 AFP: Iraqi forces move to Anbar frontline as anti-Daesh fightback nears Iraqi forces retook territory from the Daesh group east of Ramadi on Saturday, commanders said, in their first counterattack since Anbar’s provincial capital fell a week ago. A mosaic of anti-Daesh forces had for days been massing in the Euphrates Valley to ready for an offensive aimed at turning the tide on militants.

05/23/15 Reuters: US, coalition hit Daesh targets near Ramadi in Iraq The United States and its allies have staged 22 air strikes on Daesh targets since Friday, including four near Ramadi, the city taken by the militants this week, the US military said on Saturday. Coalition forces also attacked five Daesh sites in Syria between Friday and Saturday, a statement from the Combined Joint Task Force said.

05/23/15 Petra: Iraqi forces kill 60 Daesh militants in Salahuddin province Iraqi security forces killed 60 members of Daesh terrorist group during a security operation in Al-Hawija district of the Kirkuk Governorate, Iraqi security sources confirmed on Saturday.

05/21/15 VOA: Islamic State Takes Palmyra, Gains Control of Syria-Iraq Border Observers say Islamic State has captured the last Syrian-controlled border crossing between Syria and Iraq. The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Syrian forces fled the al-Tanaf crossing, giving the militants control of the border.

05/20/15 LATimes: Militants used vehicle bombs to rout Iraqi forces in Ramadi, U.S. says Islamic State suicide bombers routed Iraqi forces in a key provincial capital on Sunday after using heavy vehicles packed with enough explosives to level city blocks, a senior State Department official said Wednesday.

05/20/15 Iraqi News: Iraqi army destroys key ISIS held bridge on Euphrates River in Anbar The ministry said in a statement on its website followed by IraqiNews.com, “The army’s 8th brigade, with support from the Iraqi Air Force, managed to destroy a key bridge that was set up by ISIS militants over the Euphrates River between the areas of al-Malhama and al-Saqlawiya.”

05/20/15 abcnewsradioonline: 30 Car Bombs, 10 as Big as Oklahoma City Blast, US Official Says The State Department is sharing new details about the deadly fighting in Ramadi, Iraq, last Sunday, saying the city fell into ISIS hands after the militant group set off 30 suicide car bombs in the city center, 10 of which each were comparable in power to the Oklahoma City truck bomb of 1995.

05/20/15 USAToday: U.S. says Iraqi military regrouping to retake Ramadi Iraqi forces regrouped outside Ramadi, as the Pentagon expressed confidence Wednesday that those troops can take the city back from Islamic State militants with U.S. help.

05/20/15 Reuters: U.S. military releases video of air strikes near Ramadi, Iraq The U.S. Defense Department released video on Wednesday (May 20) it says shows coalition air strikes against Islamic State targets near Ramadi, Iraq on May 15, 2015. The videos shows several attacks against Islamic State forces after the looting of an Iraqi government building and an attempt to resupply IS forces, according to the U.S. military. Islamic State is seeking to consolidate its gains in the vast desert province of Anbar, of which Ramadi is capital, where only pockets of territory remain under government control.

05/19/15 Reuters: Islamic State tightens grip on captured Iraqi city Islamic State fighters who overran Ramadi in a major defeat for the Iraqi government and its Western backers tightened their grip on the city, flying back flags on key buildings and setting free prisoners in a drive to win the support of local residents.

05/19/15 NYTimes: ISIS Fighters Seized Advantage in Iraq Attack by Striking During Sandstorm Islamic State fighters used a sandstorm to help seize a critical military advantage in the early hours of the terrorist group’s attack on the provincial Iraqi capital of Ramadi last week, helping to set in motion an assault that forced Iraqi security forces to flee, current and former American officials said Monday.

05/18/15 Agencies: ISIL seizes gas fields near Syria's Palmyra The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group has seized two gas fields northeast of Syria's ancient Palmyra, a day after firing rockets into the city and killing five people, reports say. The Al-Hail and Arak gas fields, which were captured by ISIL on Monday, are 40km and 25km respectively from Palmyra, the reports said.

05/18/15 DoD: Navy Casualty Identified Petty Officer 3rd Class Devon J. Doyle, 21, of Alamosa, Colorado, died May 16, in Manama, Bahrain, of a non-combat related incident while on liberty. The incident is under investigation. He was assigned to USS Farragut (DDG 99), homeported in Mayport, Florida.