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Lebanese Army intensifies Nabatieh deployment as report says mission excludes Hezbollah disarmament
The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) is intensifying its presence in Nabatieh in southern Lebanon while reinforcing nearby Zawtar al Gharbiyeh, one of the pilot zones of the June 26 Trilateral Framework Between the United States of America, the State of Israel, and the Republic of Lebanon. Lebanese reporting says the Nabatieh mission is intended to contain escalation rather than disarm Hezbollah, even though the framework makes the LAF responsible for implementing a process centered on the verified disarmament and dismantlement of non-state military infrastructure.
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Islamic state plots disrupted and operatives arrested in 4 countries
Authorities in Kuwait, Israel, Turkey, and France disrupted suspected Islamic State plots or arrested the organization’s sympathizers over the past month. The incidents demonstrate the jihadist group’s continued ability to recruit and radicalize individuals despite more than a decade of sustained counterterrorism pressure.
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Iran continues attacks on Kurdish opposition group in northern Iraq
Iran has maintained its campaign against Kurdish Iranian opposition groups in the Kurdistan Region of northern Iraq, carrying out another drone strike on September 2 amid a US military withdrawal. The latest attack underscores the growing security challenges facing the Kurdistan Region as Iran intensifies pressure on Kurdish dissidents, and Iraq has yet to disarm…
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Israel claims control of Ali al Taher after weeks of Hezbollah attacks and failed handover efforts
The IDF says it cleared Hezbollah fighters from underground infrastructure in south Lebanon’s Ali al Taher Ridge and achieved operational control above and below ground. Hezbollah denied losing the strategic position. The battle exposed the limits of Lebanese government efforts to secure the site through negotiation and prompted an Iranian threat of direct retaliation.
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IDF captures Hamas security chief, reports 29 Gaza ceasefire violations Aug. 19–Sept. 3
Israeli special operations forces captured a senior Hamas security official in a September 1 operation in the Katiba area of western Gaza City. The raid came as the US-backed Board of Peace’s stabilization plan and Hamas disarmament agreement, which had prompted Israel to scale back strikes in response to reported ceasefire violations, appeared to falter.
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Kurdistan Region concerned over US support amid Iran’s continued attacks
The latest report that the US is cutting funding for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) of Iraq’s Peshmerga military force comes as Washington prepares to withdraw forces from Iraq and Iran continues its campaign of drone and missile attacks against the KRG.
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White House, Caracas release details on historic US-Venezuela oil deal
President Donald Trump announced on August 28 that the United States had reached a sweeping oil agreement with Venezuela that grants American interests majority control over more than 65 billion barrels of proven reserves. The US described the agreement as part of a 25-year strategy to expand US access to Venezuelan energy resources while building…
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The UN Monitoring Team’s latest report: Where the global jihad stands now
Generation Jihad guest host Edmund Fitton-Brown, FDD senior fellow and former coordinator of the UN Monitoring Team, talks with Colin Smith, the Monitoring Team’s current coordinator, about what the latest 1267 report shows about Al Qaeda, the Islamic State, and their affiliates, plus how the report is built and the challenges of keeping the spotlight…
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Top Islamic State spokesman killed in Yemen
Abu Hudhayfah al Ansari, who has been the official Islamic State spokesman for three years, was reported killed in a joint Saudi-Yemeni special forces raid in Hadhramaut Governorate. The Islamic State has yet to comment on Ansari’s status.
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Iranian-backed militia in Iraq sets ‘conditions’ for disarmament
Iraq’s efforts to bring the weapons of Iranian-backed militias under state control are facing a new challenge as one of the country’s groups, Kataib Sayyid al Shuhada, has laid out conditions for disarmament. The debate comes amid continued US pressure on Baghdad to disarm the groups, a looming coalition withdrawal deadline, and renewed efforts by…
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What is the Axis of Aggressors doing in Europe and the Middle East?
China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea are engaged in “unprecedented” cooperation, empowering Russian aggression in Ukraine and making the regime in Iran more lethal and resilient. Generation Jihad guest host Bradley Bowman, senior director of FDD’s Center on Military and Political Power (CMPP), discusses these relationships and impacts with John Hardie, deputy director of FDD’s…
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Mopping Up
“Our goal right now, we feel we’ve broken their back and their spirit, is to keep the heat on them.” Lieutenant General John F. Sattler, Commanding General, I Marine Expeditionary Force Coalition forces are in the mop-up phase in Fallujah. Pockets of resistance are still being encountered, mainly in Jolan in the northeast and in Shuhada in the southeast (map). The insurgents’ attempts to break out of the cordon around the city have failed, and the enemy is beginning to surrender. Coalition forces are pressing the attack in the south to finish them off. In an effort to assist the…
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The Cattle Drive
(Note: the map used in this post has been copied from Global Security; the main roads are highlighted in green. I have modified this map to highlight Route 10, the Railroad, suspected Coalition positions and advances, and other terrain features. American/British forces are the blue boxes, friendly Iraqi forces are the green boxes. I think I have pinpointed the positions of 2 of the 5 Iraqi battalions based on news sources, if anyone has further information I would greatly appreciate it.) Click on the map for a larger image. The Islamofascists in Fallujah have approached the end. Early reports indicate…
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Retooling
Information on the Iraqi forces fighting in Fallujah is difficult to come by as the media is focusing on the front line battles, which are mainly conducted by American soldiers and Marines. The Iraqi Army and National Guard have been widely criticized by the American media for problems with training and morale. Most recently, before the operation to take Samarra in October, almost half of one of the Iraqi battalions (about 300 of 750 men) deserted the unit after a suicide bombing that killed an officer of the battalion. The remaining Iraqi battalions, almost 2,000 soldiers, did fight well. The…
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Wolves to the Slaughterhouse
The offensive in Fallujah has uncovered torture chambers run by the various terrorist groups that operated unfettered for the past year. Fallujah will no longer serve as a safe production studio for Zarqawi’s string of barbaric snuff films. “We have found hostage slaughterhouses in Fallujah that were used by these people and the black clothing that they used to wear to identify themselves, hundreds of CDs and whole records with names of hostages,” the general said at a military camp near Fallujah. Mohan was unsure if the hostage records included the names of any of the at least nine foreigners…
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So Long Mogadishu, Hello Fallujah
Two days into the Second Battle of Fallujah, Coalition forces appear to be making stunning progress. Toby Harnden continues his ride with the Phantoms of Task Force 2-2, composed of elements of the 1st Infantry Division. This unit entered the fray in the Askari district, in the upper Northeast corner of Fallujah (see map below for details). The Phantoms have swept through Askari and overtaken the industrial district with little resistance. The Washington Post reports that a psyops exercise is being conducted on the streets of Fallujah. The Americans are taunting the terrorists in their own language, appealing to their…
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Thru Fallujah
The Seattle Times and the Telegraph gives excellent narratives on the tactics used by the Marines and Army forces tasked to retake Fallujah. These articles also provide insight on the overall strategy to destroy the insurgents in Fallujah. Matthew McAllester of Newsday is embedded with the 2nd Battalion of the Army’s 7th Cavalry Regiment, and describes the sophistication and lethality of the Coalition forces arrayed against Fallujah. The American way of war is deadly as the battlefield is integrated. UAVs pinpoint targets, transmit coordinates and images to field commanders, and the orders are quickly given to destroy the enemy position.…
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The Box
News reports indicate the assault on Fallujah is moving forward. Marines supported by the elements of the 1st Infantry Division, the 1st Calvary Division, and Iraqi Army units have attacked from the Northwest and Northeast, into the respective neighborhoods of Jolan and Askari. At the start of the offensive, Coalition forces attacked from the West, taking the two bridges that span the Eastern segment of the Euphrates River. While the media is not reporting this, it is likely Fallujah’s industrial park district is either under Coalition control or will be assaulted shortly; the same goes with the region West of…
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The Weak Horse
The Second Battle of Fallujah has begun. After weeks of failed attempts to negotiate with the various indigenous local factions, Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi has declared a state of emergency and has given the vast forces arrayed against Fallujah the permission to attack. The Adventures of Chester provides the order of battle, which is a mix of American Marines, The British Black Watch Regiment and 1st The Queen’s Dragoon Guards, Iraqi forces and possibly the U.S. Army’s 10th Special forces. According to CENTCOM, the “Iraqi forces will comprise a major element of the assault including five Iraqi army battalions,…
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The Battle of the Sunni Triangle
“First we’re going to cut it off, and then we’re going to kill it.” General Colin Powell, Gulf War I The battle to retake the untamed region of Iraq commonly known as the Sunni Triangle has been underway for several months. While there has been reporting of the discrete assaults on individual cities and towns, I have yet to read a comprehensive report on the scope of the conflict. This post is an attempt to piece together the individual accounts and draw a picture of the ongoing battle that is leading up to the showdown in Fallujah. There is little…
