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Tuesday, 31 May 2016

Islamic State group hits back as Iraqi army moves into Falluja


Iraqi security forces gather near Falluja, Iraq, May 31, 2016Image copyrightREUTERS
Image captionIraq's military says civilians should leave Falluja or stay indoors

A day after troops advanced through the southern suburb of Nuaimiya, scores of IS fighters attacked them, army officers told news agencies.
Militants from the so-called Islamic State have launched a dawn counter-attack as Iraqi government troops push into the city of Falluja.
The army defeated the attackers but suffered casualties, the sources said.
Aid workers are increasingly concerned for the safety of 50,000 civilians said to be trapped in Falluja.
Reports speak of people starving to death and of being killed for refusing to fight for IS.
The Iraqi military has urged those remaining to either leave the city or stay indoors but IS is preventing civilians from fleeing.
Falluja fell to IS in January 2014, a key moment in the Sunni Muslim jihadist group's rise that saw it declare a caliphate across swathes of Iraq and Syria.
It is one of two major cities held by IS in Iraq - the other being Mosul.
Map showing movement of Iraqi forces towards Falluja (24 May 2016)
Lt Gen Abdelwahab al-Saadi, the overall commander of the Falluja operation, told AFP news agency around 100 IS fighters had taken part in the attack and 75 of them had been killed.
"They came at us heavily armed but did not use car bombs or suicide bombers," he said.
But two officers with special forces in the area told the Associated Press news agency that the jihadists had sent out six explosives-laden cars, none of which reached their targets.
Iraqi government forces outside Falluja, 30 MayImage copyrightAP
Image captionA long line of government armoured vehicles could be seen outside Falluja on Monday
An Iraqi government helicopter gunship in action over Falluja, 30 MayImage copyrightAP
Image captionHelicopter gunships are backing the government advance
Photo is said to show Islamic State fighters in Falluja, 30 MayImage copyrightAP
Image captionPhotos of militants said to have been taken in Falluja have been posted online by Islamic State
IS also used snipers and tunnels in the attack, they added, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Jan Egeland, secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, which helps families displaced from the city, warned on Tuesday that a "human catastrophe" was unfolding in Falluja.
"Families are caught in the crossfire with no safe way out," he said.
"Warring parties must guarantee civilians safe exit now, before it's too late and more lives are lost."
Civilians from Falluja shelter in the Iraqi town of Garma, 30 MayImage copyrightREUTERS
Image captionCivilians from Falluja have found shelter in the Iraqi town of Garma
The situation of civilians in the city is dire, the BBC's Jim Muir reports from Iraq.
They have lived through a nine-month siege with little food or medicine and now they face mortal danger if there is an all-out assault on the city centre, our correspondent says.
The IS fighters are being widely accused of using them as human shields, he adds.
Grey line
Falluja. Photo: August 2010Image copyright

Falluja - key facts:

  • had population of more than 300,000 before it was seized by first al-Qaeda and then by IS in 2014
  • has always been a hotbed of Sunni defiance, becoming a symbol of resistance to US forces in violent battles in 2004
  • controls main highway from Baghdad to both Jordan and Syria
  • is known as the "city of mosques" - more than 200 mosques in city and surrounding area.

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