عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

Series of Attacks Target Int’l Coalition Convoys in Iraq

A convoy of US vehicles is seen after withdrawing from northern Syria at the Iraqi-Syrian border crossing in the outskirts of Dohuk, Iraq, on October 21, 2019. REUTERS/Ari Jalal
A convoy of US vehicles is seen after withdrawing from northern Syria at the Iraqi-Syrian border crossing in the outskirts of Dohuk, Iraq, on October 21, 2019. REUTERS/Ari Jalal
TT
TT

Series of Attacks Target Int’l Coalition Convoys in Iraq

A convoy of US vehicles is seen after withdrawing from northern Syria at the Iraqi-Syrian border crossing in the outskirts of Dohuk, Iraq, on October 21, 2019. REUTERS/Ari Jalal
A convoy of US vehicles is seen after withdrawing from northern Syria at the Iraqi-Syrian border crossing in the outskirts of Dohuk, Iraq, on October 21, 2019. REUTERS/Ari Jalal

International Coalition logistics lines in Iraq have come under attack on Tuesday despite local security authorities having announced securing the convoys that were moving to reach new positions in the country’s north and west.

Assaults targeting the US-led international coalition forces have been occurring progressively, with attacks sometimes taking place daily.

Staged by Iran-aligned factions, the attacks have caused minor damage but managed to embarrass Baghdad, which appeared helpless in the face of uncontrolled militias targeting ally forces fighting ISIS in the country.

While Iraqi authorities say that the columns of supplies are intended for Iraqi forces, not the coalition, anti-coalition militias insist that they are meant for US forces and their partners.

The militias have been demanding the expulsion of US forces from Iraq.

Baghdad’s Security Media Cell (SMC) announced on Tuesday the targeting of a convoy transporting equipment to the Iraqi forces in Samawah, 280 km southeast of the capital.

“A convoy that was transporting equipment for the Iraqi security forces through Iraqi local transport companies was targeted by an IED in the Mesaieed area of the Najmi district between Samawah and Diwaniyah provinces,” an SMC statement revealed.

According to the statement, the attack damaged one of the convoy’s wheels but did not stop it from moving towards its intended destination.

Even though the statement reported a single attack, other news outlets affiliated with Iran-aligned groups and some security sources mentioned four similar attacks taking place on Tuesday in the governorates of Babylon, Dhi Qar, Al-Qadisiyyah, and Al Muthanna.

Last Saturday, the Sumer Operations Command announced placing a new security plan in motion to ensure the safety of external routes in south Iraq governorates. This was intended to ensure the security of logistics convoys belonging to the coalition.

Security commands had previously announced more than one plan for this purpose, the last of which was in mid-June, but they failed in stopping the attacks.

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

Violence Spikes in Syria's Opposition-Held Northwest, Killing Civilians and Striking Infrastructure

File photo: Smoke billows following reported bombardment by government forces in the Syrian northwestern town of Barah, in the Jabal al-Zawiya region. (AFP)
File photo: Smoke billows following reported bombardment by government forces in the Syrian northwestern town of Barah, in the Jabal al-Zawiya region. (AFP)
TT
TT

Violence Spikes in Syria's Opposition-Held Northwest, Killing Civilians and Striking Infrastructure

File photo: Smoke billows following reported bombardment by government forces in the Syrian northwestern town of Barah, in the Jabal al-Zawiya region. (AFP)
File photo: Smoke billows following reported bombardment by government forces in the Syrian northwestern town of Barah, in the Jabal al-Zawiya region. (AFP)

A UN official said Thursday that he is “alarmed” by escalating violence in Syria’s opposition-held northwest in recent days, including airstrikes that hit near a food distribution site for displaced families and others that struck a power station and disabled water stations.
The UN deputy regional humanitarian coordinator for Syria, David Carden, said in a statement that 12 civilians, including children, had been killed since Monday and the increased violence has “halted critical humanitarian activities, including services provided by 10 health facilities.”
Syria’s uprising-turned-civil war, which began in 2011, has for years been a largely frozen conflict, the country effectively carved up into areas controlled by the Damascus government of President Bashar Assad, various opposition groups and Syrian Kurdish forces.
The opposition-held northwest has remained a flashpoint. In recent weeks, rescue workers and a war monitor said that Russian forces allied with Assad have stepped up bombardment of the area.
On Wednesday alone, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based war monitor, said Russian warplanes launched 28 airstrikes in the countryside around Idlib and Latakia , targeting both civilian and military areas.
Some of the Russian strikes targeted sites of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, which controls much of northwest Syria. Formerly known as the Nusra Front, the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda, the group later changed its name several times and distanced itself from al-Qaeda.
Both sides have engaged in drone attacks and shelling, the observatory said.
Other strikes have hit civilians. A strike on a furniture manufacturing workshop on the outskirts of the city of Idlib Wednesday killed 10 people and injured 32, many of them workers, the local civil defense, also known as the White Helmets, said in a statement.
The group said rescue workers spent seven hours in a grueling rescue operation, pulling survivors from the rubble. Eight teams worked to treat the injured and recover victims, it said in a statement on Thursday.
The escalation comes at a time when a stream of people are arriving in northwest Syria after fleeing the escalating Israeli bombardment in neighboring Lebanon. Carden said Monday that approximately 3,000 newly displaced Syrians had arrived in northwest Syria from Lebanon.