August 21 Iraq SITREP by Mindfriedo: American Hostage Crisis

NB: The term Salafi may refer to a Puritan Sunni (or rarely Shia) but in these SITREPs is being referred synonymously with Wahabi Takfiris.
The titles Farooq and Siddique were originally those of Ali ibn Abi Talib (as), but over the ages, for whatever reasons, have been associated with Omar ibn Khattab and Abu Bakr (the second and first Caliphs).
Similarly the term Salaf may have referred to a pious worshipper but, as is the norm now, the term Salafi Jihadism is associated with Wahabism. To avoid confusion, the term Salaf here does not refer to its “original” purpose/meaning.

Quote of the Day: Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif: If we agree to do something in Iraq, the other side of the negotiations should do something in return
Thought of the Day: Dirty, Dirty Politics

21st Aug: The Pentagon reveals that it carried out a air ground raid on Syrian territory controlled by Daash earlier in the year to try and rescue Western hostages but failed. The prisoners had been moved recently and the Special Forces had to withdraw empty handed.
21st Aug: The US confirms that heavy weaponry is on its way to Kurdish fighters in Iraq and that airstrikes on Daash positions will continue. Daash had earlier threatened to execute a second US hostage if bombings continue.
14 air raids are reported by the Pentagon on Daash positions and vehicles near Mosul Dam.
21st Aug: Security Services are attempting to identify the British national who appeared in the video and brutally executed James Foley in Iraq. Daash is believed to have used a British national for “dramatic” effect and as part of its PSYOPs.
21st Aug: UNICEF refers to the cases of kidnapping, rape and sexual abuse of women and children belonging to Iraqi Minorities by armed groups (Daash) as the worst the world has seen in this Century.
21st Aug: Jaber Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, the Kuwaiti Prime Minister congratulates Haider Jawad Al Abadi and reaffirms Kuwait’s support for Iraq.
Kuwait was invaded by Saddam Hussain at the end of the Iran Iraq war over financial aid that Iraq had received from Kuwait during the war. Saddam was under the impression that it was a grant; Kuwait insisted it was a loan. Saddam regarded Kuwait to be a part of (probably correct) Iraq and part of his prize for having fought Persian Iran on behalf of his fellow Arabs (mostly every member of the GCC).
21st Aug: The Al Salam brigade of Moqtada al Sadr claims that it has advanced and regained control of three areas in northern Babil. Its Shia fighters have taken back al-Baherat , Qaderiya 1 and Qaderiya 2 areas after fighting Daash led rebels. The attempt on the part of the Al Salam brigade is to free the area of Jurf Al Sakhar north east of Karbala, Southern Iraq.
21st Aug: The Iraqi Security forces are preparing for another push in Tikrit to try and regain control of the Presidential Palace.
21st Aug: The Iraqi Army launches an assault on Mshahdh, north of Taji, north of Baghdad. Twenty four Daash fighters are reported killed in fighting that also resulted in the deaths of Faisal Saeed, Ali Asad Musleh, Mohammed Musleh, and Mohammed Jabbar; they are reported as being prominent in Daash.
21st Aug: The Kurds are now in control of most of Mosul outskirts. The push east by Daash may end up costing them Mosul.
14 Daash fighters have surrendered to Peshmerga forces in Bashiqah, north east of Mosul. Most of those who surrendered are believed to be locals that had been recently “conscripted” into Daash. The prisoners claimed that most of their former Daash leadership fled to Mosul once the bombing started.
21st Aug: A drunken UK citizen barges into the home of a family in the English Village neighborhood of Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan and is killed on the assumption that he is a “robber.”
This unfortunate misunderstanding may have to do with his heritage, as most British Colonial Enterprises were nothing short of highway robbery.
21st Aug: The capacity of the oil pipeline shipping oil from Iraqi Kurdistan to Turkey has been increased from 120000 barrels a day to 200000 barrels per day.
Meanwhile, the Norwegian oil company DNO reaffirmed its commitment to continue its very profitable operations that have been in place for the last 10 years.
21st Aug: The Iraqi government is considering the role that former/current Baathist played in the current crisis. They are being seen as key in giving Daash logistic and political support in its takeover of most of Anbar and Nineveh.
21st Aug: Over 3000 foreign fighters are believed to be fighting for Daash in Iraq; most of them from Western Countries and over 400 from the UK alone. May God send them to their Paradise (Hell) soon!
21st Aug: The Kurds are being “advised” to be wary of Abadi who comes from the same Dawa party as Maliki and whose policies may be more or less the same.
Abadi had accused the Kurds in March of withholding 10 Billion USD in revenue from the Central Government.

Related:
21st Aug: France is now officially arming both sides. Hollande confirms that France did provide Syrian Rebels (Daash) with weapons a few months ago.
21st Aug: Daash launches an all out assault on the Tabqa Air Base of the Syrian Government. It is the last foothold of the Assad regime in the region.
Daash started the assault with the firing of rockets and tank shells at the air base.
21st Aug: Turkish NGOs in Armenia are asking for permission at the Blue Mosque of Yerevan in the Armenian Capital. They argue that Armenians are free to practice their faith in Turkey. The move is bound to cause trouble.
21st Aug: Off with his head: The petrified monarchies of the Gulf States are tightening their belts to fight blow back from the monster they helped create. The UAE has just toughened its anti terrorism laws (monarchy protection laws): The law stipulates that those found guilty of attacking or threatening the President, the Vice-President or any of the Rulers of the Emirates and their family members, and those conspiring against the state and government will face capital punishment.
21st Aug: Saudis account for just 68% of the total population of Saudi Arabia. The rest are migrants earning a living.
21st Aug: 260 Iraqi Christians are taking shelter in Churches in Jordan. Ironically or tragically in a state suspected of having trained the Daash rebels that persecuted the Christian Community of Iraq and Syria.
21st Aug: Saving Face, or what’s left of it: Qatar reacts to the statement made by the German Minister and calls the beheading of Foley as a “crime” against Islamic principles.
21st Aug: An Arab Israeli national has been arrested by the Lebanese military on suspicion of being an Israeli spy. The man cut through a barbed wire fence to enter Southern Lebanon.

Further Reading:
Questions why Sunni Iraqis do not flee Daash:
http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/middle-east-crisis-we-know-all-too-much-about-the-cruelty-of-isis--but-all-too-little-about-who-they-are-9681873.html

A British Salafi/Wahabi/Takfiri Citizen Executed Foley:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/08/20/james-foley-s-executioner-was-one-of-many-british-jihadis-in-isis.html

British fighters had been carrying out "horrific acts" like beheadings, torture and executions for a year and a half
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/aug/20/isis-militant-islamic-state-james-foley-guards-british
Bhadrakumar on America’s return to the war on terror:
http://blogs.rediff.com/mkbhadrakumar/2014/08/21/obama-reopens-war-on-terror/

Understanding the Yazidis, a faith on the brink of extinction:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/08/21/fighting-back-with-faith-inside-the-yazidis-iraqi-temple.html

The BBC continuing with its bullshit propaganda:
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-28867370