Subscribe free to our newsletters via your




IRAQ WARS
Iraqi army months away from major offensive: US officials
by Staff Writers
Macdill Air Force Base, United States (AFP) Oct 24, 2014


The Iraqi army is still months away from staging a major offensive to retake ground lost to the Islamist State group and is regrouping after suffering battlefield defeats this year, US military officials said Thursday.

Iraqi security forces were now able to stage small-scale attacks against the Islamic State group but needed time to plan and train for a larger operation, even with the aid of US-led air strikes, one military official told reporters.

"It's well within their capability to do that (counter-attack), on the order of months, not years," said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

But he added: "It's not imminent."

Asked when the Iraqi army might be ready to launch an operation to push the Islamic State group out of the northern town of Mosul, the official said it could be up to a year.

Officials at the US military's Central Command headquarters acknowledged the pace of the bombing raids by American and allied warplanes has been limited by the Iraqi army's shortcomings, as it was not on the move and mainly in a defensive position.

There have been more than 600 strikes in Iraq and Syria since August 8, officials said, a much smaller number when compared to previous air campaigns in Libya or the 2003 US invasion of Iraq.

The scope of the air strikes also has hinged on how often the IS group moved in larger numbers in the open, leaving themselves open to attack.

Under the Shiite-led government of former prime minister Nuri al-Maliki, the Iraqi army had deteriorated in recent years with some capable senior officers replaced by political loyalists and equipment neglected, the official said.

US military advisors based in Baghdad and Arbil were working to shore up the Iraqi army, according to officials.

And for the first time, US officials left open the possibility advisor teams could eventually deploy to western Anbar province, where the Iraqi army has suffered a string of setbacks.

"I can't tell you when" advisers may operate out of Anbar, the official said. "There's been a lot of discussion and planning."

Such a move could put US forces at more risk, given the strength of the Islamic State group west of Baghdad, and open President Barack Obama up to criticism that he is escalating the American commitment despite a vow not to have "boots on the ground."

Obama's war strategy calls for helping to persuade Sunni tribes to confront the Islamic State militants, but officials said that effort -- led by Baghdad -- was only at a preliminary stage.

More than one tribe had joined the fight but "it's not a widespread tribal uprising," the official said.

Many Sunnis, who felt alienated by the previous Baghdad government, were "waiting to see which way the (Haider) Abadi government is going to go," he said.

- IS stalled in Kobane -

Officials said it was too soon to judge whether President Barack Obama's strategy to defeat the Islamic State group was succeeding because the war effort is in its early stages.

But commanders have said the initial goal of the air strikes was to stop the advance of the militants across Syria and Iraq, buying time to train and arm local forces to eventually roll them back.

In at least one battleground, in the mainly Kurdish town of Kobane in northern Syria, the American air strikes appear to have succeeded in helping halt the onslaught of the militants, officials said.

A weeks-long offensive by the jihadists around the border town has stalled and Kurdish fighters likely will be able to hold out indefinitely with the help of air raids, officials said.

The front lines between Islamic State militants and Kurdish forces have not moved for more than a week, despite a concerted push by the well-armed jihadists.

"If you look at what's happened over the last week and a half, really the line in Kobane hasn't really changed much," said a second official at Central Command.

"I think unless something happens out of the current paradigm of what ISIL (IS) is doing, I think the Kurdish defenders... are going to be able to hold."

The fate of Kobane has grabbed headlines and now carries crucial symbolic importance for both the IS group and the US-led coalition.

Officials said the Islamic State group had not given up its assault on the town, and would likely keep up its offensive.

But a failure to prevail in Kobane will present the militants with a propaganda problem, as it has painted itself with an aura of inevitability, the official added.

In Washington, Pentagon chief Chuck Hagel acknowledged "mixed" results in the war effort but said: "We believe that our strategy is working."


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


.


Related Links
Iraq: The first technology war of the 21st century






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








IRAQ WARS
Iraq asks for 46,000 M1A1 Abrams tank rounds
Washington (UPI) Oct 21, 2014
The sale of thousands of rounds of tank ammunition to Iraq under the Foreign Military Sales program has been presented to Congress The proposed sale was detailed by the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency, which said the U.S. State Department had already given its approval for the deal, which carries a value of an estimated $600 million. "The proposed sale of the ammunition ... read more


IRAQ WARS
British police pay mother of spy's child

Philippines' Aquino criticises typhoon rebuilding delays

Natural disasters killed over 22,000 in 2013: Red Cross

Rescuers airlift 154 to safety after deadly Nepal storm

IRAQ WARS
Russian Bank Offers 5 Billion Rubles for GLONASS

Galileo duo handed over in excellent shape

With IRNSS-1C, India a Step Closer to Own Navigation Satellite System

ISRO to Launch India's Third Navigation Satellite on October 16

IRAQ WARS
Death and social media: what happens next

Highest altitude ice age human occupation documented in Peruvian Andes

Parts of UK 'under siege' from immigration: defence minister

Reducing population is no environmental quick fix

IRAQ WARS
How ferns adapted to one of Earth's newest and most extreme environments

Florida lizards evolve rapidly, within 15 years and 20 generations

Study uses DNA sequences to look back in time at plant evolution

Using microscopic bugs to save the bees

IRAQ WARS
New commander takes over US Ebola mission in West Africa

Visiting US envoy condemns response to Ebola epidemic

Evolutionary roots of Ebola more ancient than previously thought

Is there a way out of the Ebola epidemic

IRAQ WARS
China plans to scrap death penalty for 9 crimes: Xinhua

Cultural Revolution evoked with China mass sentencing

UN rights chief says in talks with China on Tibet visit

China's Xi echoes Mao on the arts: state media

IRAQ WARS
Hijacked Singaporean ship released near Nigeria: Seoul

IRAQ WARS
Firm in China's first bond default to be restructured

China economic growth falls to five-year low of 7.3%: govt

Australia poised to seize assets of corrupt Chinese: report

How Germany and the euro are keeping Europe in recession




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.