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| In this Monday, March 30, 2015 file photo Iraqi security forces launch a rocket against Islamic State extremist positions during clashes in Tikrit, 80 miles north of Baghdad, Iraq. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed, File) |
BAGHDAD (AP) — A military spokesman says a large-scale military operation to dislodge Islamic State militants from Iraq's western Anbar province has begun.
The spokesman for the Joint Operations Command, Brig. Gen. Yahya Rasool, announced in a televised statement that the operations started at dawn Monday. Rasool didn't clarify whether the U.S.-led international coalition is taking part, mentioning only government forces and allied Shiite and Sunni paramilitary troops.
This is not the first time the Iraqi government has announced an operation to retake Anbar — where several key towns, including the provincial capital Ramadi, remain under Islamic State control. In May, authorities announced an operation to retake Ramadi, but there has not been any major progress on the ground since then.
Rasool didn't provide any further details on the ongoing operations.
Source: The Huffington Post
