The first seven days of February 2014 saw a huge amount of
violence. There were just over 200 reported security incidents and almost 300
deaths. Baghdad, Ninewa, Salahaddin, and Anbar were the main focus of insurgent
activity, while Tamim and Diyala saw a mid-level of attacks. There were also
scattered incidents in southern Iraq. The beginning of February showed that the
insurgency was maintaining the same pace of operations as seen in January.
Scene of a car bombing in Camp Sara, Baghdad Feb 6, 2014 (AFP)
The press reported 204 attacks, 296 deaths, and 700 wounded
in the first week of February. There were an averaged of 29.1 security
incidents per day. That was just below January’s average of 33.2. February 1,
3, 4 and 5 had over 30 attacks per day with 36, 32, 34, and 35 respectively.
February 7 was the quietist with just 18 reported attacks. January 5 was the
most violent with 89 deaths and 169 wounded. In comparison on February 4 only
20 people were killed and 77 wounded and on February 7 there were 20 deaths and
54 wounded.
Attacks, Deaths and
Wounded in Iraq Feb. 1-7, 2014
Attacks
|
Deaths
|
Wounded
|
|
Feb. 1
|
36
|
35
|
94
|
Feb. 2
|
28
|
28
|
28
|
Feb. 3
|
32
|
54
|
116
|
Feb. 4
|
21
|
20
|
77
|
Feb. 5
|
34
|
89
|
169
|
Feb. 6
|
35
|
50
|
162
|
Feb. 7
|
18
|
20
|
54
|
TOTALS
|
204
|
296
|
700
|
Broken down by province were 65 attacks in Baghdad, 41 in
Ninewa, 37 in Salahaddin, 25 in Anbar, 16 in Tamim, 14 in Diyala, 3 in Basra, 2
in Babil, and 1 in Wasit. That has been the same pattern of violence seen over
the last year or so. Baghdad is the center of government and the top target of
the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS). Salahaddin appears to be the
only province where insurgents have picked up their attacks since the fighting
in Anbar started, while in Ninewa attacks were about the same as previous
months. Anbar likely had far more incidents than were reported. Tamim and
Diyala have been relatively quiet in recent weeks, while the violence in the
south could be the work of various groups not just insurgents.
Attacks And
Casualties By Province Feb. 1-7, 2014
Province
|
Attacks
|
Deaths
|
Wounded
|
Anbar
|
25
|
30
|
79
|
15 ISF, 15
Civilians
|
35 ISF,
4 Sahwa,
40 Civilians
|
||
Babil
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
Baghdad
|
65
|
148
|
347
|
17 ISF, 3 Sahwa,
128 Civilians
|
39 ISF,
1 Sahwa,
307 Civilians
|
||
Basra
|
3
|
3
|
0
|
3 Civilians
|
|||
Diyala
|
14
|
13
|
27
|
4 ISF,
9 Civilians
|
13 ISF,
1 Sahwa,
13 Civilians
|
||
Ninewa
|
41
|
41
|
94
|
21 ISF,
20 Civilians
|
52 ISF,
42 Civilians
|
||
Salahaddin
|
37
|
57
|
125
|
28 ISF,
9 Sahwa,
20 Civilians
|
31 ISF,
37 Sahwa,
57 Civilians
|
||
Tamim
|
16
|
4
|
25
|
3 ISF,
1 Civilian
|
15 ISF,
10 Civilians
|
||
Wasit
|
1
|
0
|
3
|
3 Civilians
|
There were an average of 9.2 incidents a day in Baghdad.
That was topped off by February 5 when there were nine attacks including a
suicide bomber on a restaurant in Karrada,
two car bombs in the Green
Zone near the Foreign Ministry, a car bomb near some shops in Khilani
Square in central Baghdad, three car bombs near Diyala Bridge in Tarmiya,
a car bomb in Zafaraniya,
and the final one in Dora.
To go along with that rockets fell on Haifa
Street, an IED went off in a café in Dora,
and a drive by shooting in Hurriya.
In total that left 53 dead and 112 wounded. Before that on February 3 there
were 16 reported attacks led by six car bombings in Mahmudiya,
Hurriya, Baladiyat, and Abu
Dashir. A suicide bomber also targeted a checkpoint in Taji
and another in Meshahda.
There were eight other smaller incidents including five shootings, two sticky
bombs, and a grenade
thrown at the president of Iraqiya University. All together those led to
another 41 killed and 87 wounded. In total there were 25 car bombings and four
suicide bombers in just those first seven days. This has become the daily
routine in Baghdad. In total 148 people were killed in Baghdad from February
1-7, made up of 128 civilians, 17 members of the security forces, and 3 Sons of
Iraq/Sahwa. There were also 347 wounded including 307 civilians, 39 police and
soldiers, and 1 Sons of Iraq. Baghdad has been the main focus for ISIS. It is
likely responsible for the car and suicide bombings. It is attempting to use
them to incite a new sectarian conflict, and make the government look weak.
That was the reason why the overwhelming number of casualties was civilians.
Attacks And
Casualties In Baghdad Feb. 1-7, 2014
Attacks
|
Deaths
|
Wounded
|
|
Feb. 1
|
9
|
3
|
16
|
Feb. 2
|
7
|
10
|
10
|
Feb. 3
|
16
|
41
|
87
|
Feb. 4
|
10
|
13
|
39
|
Feb. 5
|
9
|
53
|
112
|
Feb. 6
|
11
|
23
|
75
|
Feb. 7
|
3
|
5
|
8
|
TOTALS
|
65
|
148
|
347
|
Ninewa was the second most violence province in the
beginning of February. There were 41 attacks leading to 41 deaths, and 94
wounded. That showed the small scale of insurgent operations there. Most were
shootings and IEDs that only killed and wounded a few people. February 6 was
the most violent with 10 incidents, 11 killed, and 30 wounded the worst of
which was an attempt
to break into Badush
Prison that killed one guard, three prisoners, and wounded three guards,
five prisoners, and 5 civilians. The other incidents that day were more the
norm such as a shooting at a checkpoint in Rifai
that killed one soldier and wounded another. ISIS is the main group operating
in Ninewa’s capital of Mosul where they act like a mafia extorting money from
businesses, and carry out targeted attacks upon the ISF and local notables. The
point of many of their attacks is to maintain their financial operations as
well as undermine the local security forces.
Attacks And
Casualties In Ninewa Feb. 1-7, 2014
Attacks
|
Deaths
|
Wounded
|
|
Feb. 1
|
6
|
4
|
8
|
Feb. 2
|
5
|
5
|
5
|
Feb. 3
|
5
|
5
|
3
|
Feb. 4
|
5
|
7
|
25
|
Feb. 5
|
6
|
7
|
22
|
Feb. 6
|
10
|
11
|
30
|
Feb. 7
|
4
|
2
|
1
|
TOTALS
|
41
|
41
|
94
|
Salahaddin has been the only other province that has seen an
uptick in insurgent activity since the fighting in Anbar started. There were 37
reported attacks there leading to 57 killed and 125 wounded. The deadliest day
was February 1 when suicide bombers attacked Tikrit
and Baiji,
IEDs went off in Tikrit,
Tuz
Kharmato, and two in
Shirqat,
along with shootings in Balad,
Awja,
Samarra, and south of that city
accounting for 17 fatalities and 48 wounded. That amount of casualties was
almost met by February 6 when a car bomb went off in Tuz
Kharmato killing ten and wounding 23. A number of small incidents added
another 4 deaths and 20 wounded. For the seven days there were 57 deaths and
125 wounded. ISIS, Ansar al-Islam, and the Baathist Naqshibandi are all active
in the province. The later two like to portray themselves as national
groups fighting against the government and claim they only attack the security
forces. That’s likely why the ISF and the Sahwa were the main victims.
Attacks And
Casualties In Salahaddin Feb. 1-7, 2014
Attacks
|
Deaths
|
Wounded
|
|
Feb. 1
|
10
|
17
|
48
|
Feb. 2
|
3
|
3
|
1
|
Feb. 3
|
3
|
2
|
1
|
Feb. 4
|
3
|
0
|
8
|
Feb. 5
|
8
|
18
|
17
|
Feb. 6
|
6
|
14
|
43
|
Feb. 7
|
4
|
3
|
7
|
TOTALS
|
37
|
57
|
125
|
Unlike those first three governorates Tamim and Diyala have
only seen mid level violence. In Tamim there were just 16 attacks and 14 in
Diyala. The latter only saw 13 killed and 27 wounded, while Tamim had 4 deaths
and 25 wounded. That didn’t mean that insurgents weren’t carrying out bold
operations there. On February 5 for example ISIS were reported to have seized
four villages in the Sulaiman Bek area in Tamim,
and on February 7 a candidate for Mutahidun had his house bombed in Baquba, Diyala. Still
the two provinces have been relatively quite recently perhaps showing that
militants are concentrating upon other areas of the country.
Attacks And
Casualties In Tamim Feb. 1-7, 2014
Attacks
|
Deaths
|
Wounded
|
|
Feb. 1
|
1
|
0
|
3
|
Feb. 2
|
8
|
4
|
9
|
Feb. 3
|
2
|
0
|
8
|
Feb. 4
|
1
|
0
|
5
|
Feb. 5
|
4
|
0
|
0
|
Feb. 6
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
Feb. 7
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
TOTALS
|
16
|
4
|
25
|
Attacks And
Casualties In Diyala Feb. 1-7, 2014
Attacks
|
Deaths
|
Wounded
|
|
Feb. 1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
Feb. 2
|
2
|
6
|
3
|
Feb. 3
|
4
|
4
|
10
|
Feb. 4
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
Feb. 5
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
Feb. 6
|
6
|
2
|
14
|
Feb. 7
|
2
|
1
|
0
|
TOTALS
|
14
|
13
|
27
|
In Anbar, the fighting appears to be deadlocked. Reports
mention attacks in the same areas for the last several weeks. In the beginning
of February Albu Faraj, Albu Jabar, Saglawiya along with sections of Fallujah
and Ramadi were the sites of most of the violence. The fact that ISIS has
increasingly used suicide bombers there shows that it has become a major focus
for the group. There were seven suicide attacks in just the first week with two
attacking a checkpoint northeast of Fallujah
on February 1, a suicide bomber hitting a checkpoint in Niamiya
on February 5, and four being killed as they attempted to attack some soldiers
in Ramadi on
January 7. The press reported 25 security incidents, 30 killed, and 79 wounded
from February 1-7 but the actual number is likely much higher. The government
has also been responsible for some of these casualties with shelling
being blamed
for eight deaths and 29 wounded on February 7.
Attacks And
Casualties In Anbar Feb. 1-7, 2014
Attacks
|
Deaths
|
Wounded
|
|
Feb. 1
|
10
|
11
|
19
|
Feb. 2
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
Feb. 3
|
1
|
2
|
4
|
Feb. 4
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
Feb. 5
|
4
|
8
|
18
|
Feb. 6
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
Feb. 7
|
5
|
9
|
38
|
TOTALS
|
25
|
30
|
79
|
Finally there was only sporadic violence in the south. There
were two shootouts with insurgents in Babil resulting in no casualties on February 4 and 6. In
Basra three bodies were found in various parts of the province on February
5. Finally in Wasit there was a car bomb that wounded three on February
3. That was the first vehicle delivered explosive device in the south since
November. Again, ISIS has been putting its focus upon Baghdad and Anbar, and
attacks in the south have declined as a result. It’s not even clear whether all
of these incidents were the result of insurgents. Militias and criminal gangs
are active in the south and might have carried out some of these incidents.
Attacks And
Casualties In Babil, Basra, Wasit Feb. 1-7, 2014
Attacks
|
Deaths
|
Wounded
|
|
Feb. 1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
Feb. 2
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
Feb. 3
|
1
|
0
|
3
|
Feb. 4
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
Feb. 5
|
3
|
3
|
0
|
Feb. 6
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
Feb. 7
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
TOTALS
|
6
|
3
|
3
|
The beginning of February marks the pattern of violence that
is likely to be seen for the foreseeable future. In Anbar, ISIS, Ansar
al-Sunni, the 1920 Revolution Brigades, and others are operating openly in
Fallujah and Ramadi and the surrounding villages. In Baghdad ISIS continues to
carry out mass casualty bombings. In Salahaddin the Islamic State and the
Naqshibandi are going after the security forces, while in Ninewa ISIS continues
with its low level attacks to maintain its control of Mosul as it has for
years. That has left Diyala, Tamim, and the south relatively quiet in recent
months. Even with insurgents focusing upon just a few provinces they are still
wreaking havoc. The amount of death and destruction they were able to sow in
just seven days showed how much each group has been able to rebuild its
networks. ISIS especially has shown the ability to strike in any part of the
country and shift its fighters and resources to different areas. With this newfound
strength and flexibility it will be especially hard for the militants to be
subdued, and there’s a great possibility that violence might even increase in
the country.
SOURCES
A
note about sources. Usually all of the articles consulted are listed in the
bibliography. Since this report is based upon over 400 of them it is
impossible to have them all in the piece. For the sake of space then only the
reports that were linked are included here.
AIN, "3 Corpses discovered in Basra," 2/5/14
- "12 guards, prisoners killed, injured in attack on Badush
prison," 2/6/14
- "Bombings of MoF headquarters, Karada area result in
killing, injuring 19 persons," 2/5/14
- "Suicide bomber killed, car bomb detonated central
Tikrit," 2/1/14
Alsumaria, "Civilian killed in an armed attack northwest of
Baghdad," 2/5/14
Al-Ani, Ammar, "Gunman killed and
six others were arrested when security forces clashed within Salahaddin,"
Alsumaria, 2/1/14
Associated Press, "Car bombings in Iraq kill at least 23
people," 2/3/14
Buratha News, "The bombing of the home of a candidate for
united," 2/7/14
- "Champions of the Iraqi army killed four suicide bombers
tried to storm the center of the military forces in Ramadi," 2/7/14
- "Found the body of a member of
the internal affairs of the son of a senior officer slain and dumped a few
hours after he was kidnapped south of Tikrit," 2/1/14
Al Forat, "Death toll of three bombings in Baghdad hit 42
deaths, injuries," 2/5/14
- "IED went off near school in Sharqat," 2/1/14
- "Shirqat: IED blast injures Police Captain's 2 sons,"
2/1/14
Hamid, Ghassan, Shafiq, Mohammed, "The outcome of the end of
the bombing north of Tikrit at nine dead and 29 wounded," Alsumaria,
2/2/14
Iraq Times, "martyrs and injured in bombings in central
Baghdad 48," 2/5/14
Karim, Ammar, "7 bombs hit Baghdad as US lawmakers slam
Maliki," Agence France Presse, 2/6/14
Al Mada, "Injury, a police captain
in armed attack south of Tikrit," 2/1/14
- "Killing and wounding 11 people in a car bomb south of
Baghdad," 2/5/14
- "Killing and wounding 11 people in bombing south of
Baghdad," 2/5/14
- "Killing and wounding 11 soldiers in a suicide bombing that
targeted an army checkpoint north of Baghdad," 2/3/14
- "Killing and wounding 18 civilians from
"indiscriminate bombing" of the army on Fallujah," 2/7/14
Al Masalah, "Final outcome of the explosion of a
booby-trapped car 10 dead and 23 wounded," 2/7/14
- "Killing four civilians and wounding 16 in blast in the
district of Tuz," 2/1/14
- "Killing nine civilians and wounding 16, the explosion of
two car bombs in the area of Abu Dshir," 2/3/14
National Iraqi News Agency, "/3/ Civilians Injured by a Car
Bomb North of Wasit," 2/3/14
- "3 Elements of al-Qaeda killed in Jurf al-Sakhar in
Babylon," 2/6/14
- "8 Soldiers Killed and Wounded in a Suicide Attack on a
Checkpoint North of Baghdad," 2/3/14
- "/34/ Civilians Killed and Wounded in Fallujah Today as a
Result of Bombing," 2/7/14
- "Acting head of Iraqiya University escapes an assassination
attempt in Baghdad," 2/3/14
- "Army kills two suicide bombers north of Fallujah,"
2/1/14
- "Interior Ministry: Victims of the two suicide bombings,
near ministry of foreign affairs, up 20 dead, 28 wounded," 2/5/14
- "Six civilians wounded in central Baghdad," 2/5/14
- "A soldier killed and another wounded , west of
Mosul," 2/6/14
Radio Nawa, "Killing 8 soldiers and wounding 18 others, an
explosion of two car bombs at checkpoints in Fallujah," 2/5/14
Al Rayy, "Found the body of a
government employee after less than 24 hours he was kidnapped south of
Tikrit," 2/1/14
- "Gunmen in control of four villages in the area east of
Solomon Beck Salahuddin," 2/5/14
- "The killing of three Daash and the escape of a leader in
the organization in the north of Babylon," 2/4/14
- "Martyrdom and wounding nine people near a popular café
bombing south of Baghdad," 2/5/14
Al-Tamimi, Aymenn Jawad, “Musings of an Iraqi Brasenostril
on Jihad: Comprehensive Reference Guide to Sunni Militant Groups in Iraq,”
Jihadology, 1/23/14
No comments:
Post a Comment