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News ID: 44436
Publish Date : 22 September 2017 - 21:31

Iraqi Forces Liberate More Areas Near Hawijah



BAGHDAD (Dispatches) – Iraqi government forces have managed to seize back nearly a dozen villages near Hawijah as they are battling Daesh Takfiri terrorists in joint operations with allied fighters from the Popular Mobilization Units to push the terrorists out of the northern town.
The commander of Hawijah liberation operation, Lieutenant General Abdul Amir Yarallah, announced in a statement that the units of the 9th Armored Division as well as the 2nd and 11th brigades of the Popular Mobilization Units, commonly known by the Arabic name Hashd al-Sha’abi, had liberated the villages of Ain Kawa, Hoshterluk, Hasarok, Greater Sarnaj, Lesser Sarnaj, Upper Shandar, Adlah, Fatima, Mahmoud al-Sha’abi, Qouj and Kharbati, Arabic-language al-Sumaria television network reported.
Yarallah added that army forces and their allies had successfully completed the first phase of the operation to liberate Hawijah, located 240 kilometers north of the capital Baghdad, from the grip of Daesh extremists.
Iraqi armed forces launched a massive offensive to liberate the town of Hawijah in the oil-rich northern province of Kirkuk, one of the last remaining Daesh bastions in the Arab country.
"At the dawn of a new day, we announce the launch of the first stage of the liberation of Hawijah, in accordance with our commitment to our people to liberate all Iraqi territory and eradicate Daesh’s terrorist groups,” said Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi in a statement on Thursday.
"Greetings to all of our forces, who are waging several battles of liberation at the same time and who are winning victory after victory and this will be another, with the help of God,” he added.
Seven areas in the operation zone have reportedly been liberated since the early hours of the day.
The UN has predicted that over 85,000 people could be displaced during the operation.
Hawijah is one of the four Iraqi towns still controlled by Daesh. The other three towns of al-Qa’im, located nearly 400 kilometers northwest of Baghdad near the Syrian border, Anah and Rawa are in Anbar Province.