IS counterattacks target Iraqi troops in Ramadi

According to the commander, after Ramadi is freed from Daesh militants, the Iraqi army will start liberating the city of Fallujah in the Anbar province.

He also said: “We are coming to liberate Mosul and it will be the fatal and final blow to Daesh”, using an Arabic acronym for Isis. Although the U.S. official said government forces repelled every attack, Iraqi officials have said there were casualties among the troops.

“Nineveh police managed to kill seven attackers but three were able to detonate their suicide vests”, Sorchi said, adding that three officers were among the 12 dead policemen. Mouadan was reportedly known to be working on more terrorist plots targeting the West. The U.S. forces have also announced the death of another militant linked to the Paris terror plot, Abdul Qader Hakim.

The Iraqi army units in Ramadi have called for reinforcements after suffering heavy losses in ISIS’s attacks on Sunday.

Colonel Warren said that they had not yet seen ISIS “mass enough combat power to move Iraq off their positions”.

The head of the Anbar Provincial Council, Sabah Al-Karhut, told CNN the attacks happened in quick succession. The military responded by killing at least 42 militants including the bombers, the ministry said.

After prolonged siege lasting over a week Iraqi forces could finally retake control of Iraqi town of Ramadi from IS grip on 28th December. Reinforcements are expected from neighboring Syria, where efforts to dislodge Islamic State have been hampered by a civil war. ‘The suicide attacks had been stopped and, without any command and control, the Isis fighters had retreated into another part of the city.

Oil sales are a critical source of revenue for Islamic State and the attacks are created to cut back on their financial resources.