Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi announced in a speech to the Iraqi Youth Parliament that he had set up a plan to liberate the Tal Afar region with the participation of all the security services, the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) and Tribal Mobilization Units.
“Countries of the world joined and supported Iraq in the war on terrorism because they found a real determination in it to fight ISIS,” Abadi said. “We want a national political class similar to the military commanders in their race to defeat ISIS,” Abadi called on Iraqi politicians to do more.
“We want to balance our relations with states and not to hand over our interests to a country without others,” the prime minister said adding that “There is a class that doesn’t want the state to recover, including terrorist gangs, and they will not get away with their act,” Abadi added.
Abadi stressed in his speech that all of Iraq has suffered from war on terrorism and that the Iraqi government is committed to helping everyone.
“We want to construct all the provinces because the whole country suffered as a result of the war against terrorism.”
Tal Afar area is located northwest of Mosul and the PMU was able to besiege ISIS inside it since 2016. The PMU also repelled several ISIS attacks in this region so far. It’s also believed that the battle in Tal Afar take a long time as the Pentagon announced that ISIS has only 1000 fighters in Tal Afar while Iraqi forces will attack with tens of thousands of troops.
This is why the US sees the current government a threat since they are about the people, where as the US is about empowering a few people and keeping the rest under thumb. The strength of the Iraqi people in themselves as members a country who has shown great resilience in strength and courage in combating terrorists backed by Foreign governments. May their country grow in solidarity and unity in overcoming those forces that seek it’s demise , Insha’allah !
Finally, Iraq and the PMU can finish Daesh in Tal Afar. Hope Turkey doesn’t chimp out about “muh sectarian PMU killin’ Sunni Turkmen”.