Post Mosul Liberation Day 26-27 Aug 5-6 2017

There was more violence in and around Mosul. On August 5, four bodies were discovered shot and tortured in Hadbaa in the northeast. The next day, an IED went off in a house killing one and wounding another, a suicide bomber was killed, thirty bodies were found in a mass grave in a market, a teenage age boy’s body was uncovered in the Old City, a policeman was wounded in a shooting at a checkpoint, and an IS fighter emerged from a tunnel and shot at two tribal Hashd killing one and injuring another. All of this happened in the western section of the city. A leading Islamic State judge was arrested with his family as well. Outside the city in Houd, in the Qayara district in the southeast two IS elements died in a gunfight. Nearly every day there are security incidents in Mosul and Ninewa in general. These are still scattered, and have little impact overall, but they do show a low level of insecurity. This is a major reason why so few people are going back to Mosul. The security forces in Mosul are also being transitioned, which could open gaps, which the insurgents could exploit.

The Tal Afar operation is delayed. The army’s 9^th and 16^th Divisions were ordered out of Mosul to the Tal Far operation. Their areas of the city were being transferred to the Federal Police. The Air Force started bombarding the district days ago. The Defense Ministry told Al Mada that the army and police were ready, but they were waiting for the Hashd. They claimed they could have taken Tal Afar at the end of 2016, but Prime Minister Haidar Abadi stopped them and sent them to western Ninewa instead. Abadi said he told the Hashd to attack Tal Afar, but was ignored. This is just part of the political disputes that have surrounded the campaign from the start.

In the Qayara district a policeman’s body was found likely the victim of a shootout with the Hashd. A week ago, the Iraqi forces (ISF) closed a pontoon bridge across the Tigris River to try to stop the Imam Ali Brigade from using it to smuggle oil. On August 4, a policeman went missing, only to have his body turn up August 6. This was after the police got into an argument with the Hashd over the bridge. The police didn’t seem to want to confront the Imam Ali Brigade directly about its activities probably fearing just such an incident would happen. Now the question is whether there will be any consequences for this death.

While families are moving to Mosul, others are leaving. 20 families departed from the Mesherfa neighborhood of west Mosul after they discovered IEDs. Unexploded bombs, the continuing attacks, the lack of jobs, and high rents are all reasons why people are departing the city. There are still more displaced leaving than returning right now.

Kuwait was the latest country to pledge money to help Iraq rebuild. It gave $100 million to improve health services in liberated areas of the country. It already gave $21 million for industry and electricity in those districts. That raises the amount of money Iraq has raised so far to roughly $500 million. It’s estimated that Mosul needs $1 billion to repair basic infrastructure, more for rebuilding housing and government offices, plus additional funds for Ninewa in general. Iraq is looking for $100 billion overall for a 10-year reconstruction plan. There will be two conferences coming up, one in Kuwait and one in Washington to try to get most of this amount from grants and loans from the international community and institutions such as the World Bank.

SOURCES

Al Araby, “Iraq announces readiness for its forces to move towards Tal Afar,” 8/5/17

Baghdad Post, "30 dead bodies uncovered in 'mass grave' at market in Mosul," 8/6/17

Davis, Daniel and Kazianis, Harry, “After Mosul, Rebuilding Iraq Will Be Just as Painful This Time Around,” National Interest, 8/5/17

Elmanzalawy, Elwy, “Boy’s body with gunshot wounds found in Mosul’s Old City,” Iraqi News, 8/6/17

iMMAP, “Iraq: Mosul Humanitarian Response: Weekly Explosive Incidents Report (30 July – 05 August 2017,” 8/5/17

Al Mada, “Mosul scenario is to be repeated in Tal Afar after military buildup is completed,” 8/7/17

Al Masalah, “Kuwait grants Iraq $ 100 million to promote affected areas,” 8/6/17

Mostafa, Mohamed, “Defense ministry says Tal Afar civilians give accurate intelligence on IS,” Iraqi News, 8/5/17

- “Officer’s corpse found at Mosul site of recent inter-troop disputes,” Iraqi News, 8/6/17

- “Some repatriated Mosul families leave again over war remnants,” Iraqi News, 8/6/17

Mostafa, Nehal, “Two Islamic State members, tribal fighter killed in Mosul,” Iraqi News, 8/6/17

New Sabah, “Joint forces are preparing new plans and reorganization to take Tal Afar district,” 8/6/17

NINA, “A Judge Of Daesh Arrested With His Family In Western Mosul,” 8/5/17

- "PMF Foil An Attack To Daesh On Syrian-Iraqi Border," 8/5/17

-"Police Find 4 Bodies For Civilians IN Hadba Area, North Of Mosul," 8/5/17

Al Rafidain, “Military Sources: Order For The 9^th Armored Division To Head To Tal Afar,” 8/6/17

Xinhua, "3 killed in blasts, gunfire in northern Iraq," 8/6/17