Turkish leader warns of renewed sectarian war in Iraq

[SocalDinar]

Turkish leader warns of renewed sectarian war in Iraq

Jim Michaels, USA TODAY 3:17 p.m. EST March 5, 2015

Iraqi army soldiers and volunteers prepare to launch mortar shells and rockets against Islamic State militants in Tikrit, Iraq, on March 4.

(Photo: AP)

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NEW YORK – Turkey's prime minister warned that sectarian war may reignite in Iraq because Iranian-backed Shiite militias are helping to liberate Sunni areas occupied by the Islamic State.

"All these cities, Sunni-populated areas, should be liberated by the inhabitants of those cities," Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said in an interview. "If Shiite militias come in, then there will be sectarian war."

Davutoğlu's comments echo U.S. fears that Iraq's reliance on Shiite militias and Iran's military to fight the Islamic State could unleash renewed sectarian bloodshed as Iraq launches an offensive to oust the militants.

Davutoğlu planned to meet Thursday with United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon to discuss Iraq and other issues. He spoke to USA TODAY and Time magazine in a 30-minute interview.

Turkey — which shares borders with Iraq, Syria and Iran — is a key U.S. ally in the region.

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu gives a speech during the parliamentary group meeting in Ankara on Feb. 25.

(Photo: Adem Altan, AFP/Getty Images)

An Iraqi offensive launched this week in Tikrit, hometown of the late Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and an important Sunni area, highlighted the growing role of Shiite militias and Iranian forces in fighting the Islamic State.

"This is the most overt conduct of Iranian support in the form of artillery and other things," Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Congress this week.

The United States, which advises Iraqi forces and conducts airstrikes in parts of Iraq, has not been asked to assist in the offensive in Tikrit, 80 miles north of Baghdad.

Sectarian tensions that have long plagued Iraq have flared up again. The Islamic State, a Sunni extremist group, exploited Sunni anger at Iraq's Shiite-dominated government when the militants invaded Iraq last year, and they were welcomed by Sunni residents.

That anger led to the collapse of a large portion of Iraq's army because Sunni soldiers were reluctant to fight for Shiite commanders and a government they mistrusted.

 

About two-thirds of the forces in the Tikrit operation are Iranian or Shiite militias, Dempsey said.

The key to success will hinge on whether the military hands over security to Sunni police and tribes, said Ismael Alsodani, a retired Iraqi general who served as a military attache in Washington. Sunni leaders warn that Tikrit residents won't accept Shiite militias to defend them.

 

 

Smoke rises from Tikrit, Iraq, on March 5.

(Photo: Ahmad Al-Rubaye, AFP/Getty Images)

Iraq's government turned to the tribes and Iranians because Iraq's armed forces are not ready to take on the islamic State, Alsodani said. "Iraq's government had no other options than the militias."

Marine Lt. Gen. Vincent Stewart, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, estimated it would take six to nine months before Iraq's armed forces are prepared to launch a major counteroffensive against the militants.

The United States has dispatched about 3,000 troops to Iraq, including several hundred advisers who are mostly limited to training Iraqi forces on bases.

The Pentagon has said it is not coordinating directly with Iran's military. That could be a problem for American forces if Iran plays a role in a planned offensive this spring to liberate Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city.

"It's going to complicate things," said Mark Hertling, a retired Army lieutenant general who commanded coalition forces in northern Iraq in 2007 and 2008.

Some military experts said the United States and Iran will need to find some way to coordinate, even if it is indirectly through the Iraqis.

 

Ihttp://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2015/03/05/turkey-iraq-syria-davutoglu/24440165/

 

[stealthwarrior]

Turkey hasn't done anything but sit back and run their mouths.how about a big cup full of shut the F up?

[blueskyline]

Let them Eat Chicken ......Ha Ha Ha

[SocalDinar]

Turkey PM rules out combat mission to help Iraq in Mosul   March 06, 2015

Turkey will not take part in any military offensive by Iraq to retake the city of Mosul from the Daesh group, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Thursday.

“We would support Mosul but will not combat directly,” Davutoglu was quoted as saying by the Hurriyet newspaper en route to New York, referring to Turkey’s willingess to offer Iraq logistical and other assistance, but not troops.

Davutoglu, however, warned that Turkey would respond if threatened by any attack on its soil.

“If there is any direct threat to Turkey we will respond immediately. We have the potential and strength to do that,” he was quoted as saying in the report.

Mosul is a major hub for the Daesh militants and holds special significance as the place where its leader Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi proclaimed his “caliphate” straddling Iraq and Syria.

A senior US envoy said Monday that no timeline should be imposed on Iraqi forces planning an offensive to take back Mosul as the operation will require elaborate preparations.

Turkey’s contribution to the fight against Daesh has been limited to allowing the transit of Iraqi peshmerga forces through its soil to fight in the Syrian town of Kobani, which was retaken by Kurdish forces in January.

Turkey is also providing training for the peshmerga forces in Iraq.

In February, Turkey relocated a historic tomb and evacuated the soldiers guarding the monument from Syrian territory after it was surrounded by Daesh militants.

 

http://gulftoday.ae/portal/ba09b39f-fad4-4882-9944-2b0030c3f16c.aspx

Turkey hasn't done anything but sit back and run their mouths.how about a big cup full of shut the F up?

So True.

Edited March 5, 2015 by SocalDinar

[Z-Zapper]

Turkey PM rules out combat mission to help Iraq in Mosul March 06, 2015

Turkey will not take part in any military offensive by Iraq to retake the city of Mosul from the Daesh group, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Thursday.

“We would support Mosul but will not combat directly,” Davutoglu was quoted as saying by the Hurriyet newspaper en route to New York, referring to Turkey’s willingess to offer Iraq logistical and other assistance, but not troops.

Davutoglu, however, warned that Turkey would respond if threatened by any attack on its soil.

“If there is any direct threat to Turkey we will respond immediately. We have the potential and strength to do that,” he was quoted as saying in the report.

Mosul is a major hub for the Daesh militants and holds special significance as the place where its leader Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi proclaimed his “caliphate” straddling Iraq and Syria.

A senior US envoy said Monday that no timeline should be imposed on Iraqi forces planning an offensive to take back Mosul as the operation will require elaborate preparations.

Turkey’s contribution to the fight against Daesh has been limited to allowing the transit of Iraqi peshmerga forces through its soil to fight in the Syrian town of Kobani, which was retaken by Kurdish forces in January.

Turkey is also providing training for the peshmerga forces in Iraq.

In February, Turkey relocated a historic tomb and evacuated the soldiers guarding the monument from Syrian territory after it was surrounded by Daesh militants.

http://gulftoday.ae/portal/ba09b39f-fad4-4882-9944-2b0030c3f16c.aspx

So True.

A "shut the F up latte" sounds delicious. Little cinnamon on top. Mmmmm. He should try it, but I've never seen that on the item menu at Starbucks.

[tlars brother]

STFU turkey

[dantach]

Turkey is not the proper name for that country. Chicken would fit better.

[sandfly]

THANKS

[TBomb]

 

Dempsey talks about the battle of Tikrit detailsBy Roudao 9 hours ago

Dempsey

Roudao - Arbil

predicted the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, US Army, Gen. Martin Dempsey, that the double whammy carried out by Iranian-backed militias and Iraqi government forces, will prevail over the "Islamic state" fighters Daash in the battle taking place in Tikrit, Saddam Hussein's hometown . , said Dempsey said "the attack on Tikrit (100 km north of Baghdad), it was not possible without US air strikes, which curbed the organization in last place in the north." The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, US Army, said that "about 23 thousand members Shiite militias backed by Iran and Iraqi soldiers taking part in the attack, compared with the hundreds of organizing the Islamic state Daash fighters, "he said, adding that the attack did not follow the standard military style. He spoke Dempsey for "flow Humvees, trucks and other Iraqi vehicles to Tikrit, saying:" I would not characterize as advanced military maneuver, "he said." I do not see evidence that the Iranian army is fighting. " He explained Dempsey: "If not for the air campaign for the US-led coalition, which Daash forces drained in Baiji, what was the current campaign in Tikrit be militarily possible," he said "The important thing about this process in Tikrit, not in how the military side as far as what would result from the outcome." He pointed Dempsey to be crucial task for the leaders of Iraq is to achieve a balance between the Iranian role in enabling Shiite militias and partnership Iraq with the United States and members of the Alliance of others, pointing that "the only person who can balance it is the Prime Minister of Iraq, so I want to identify the point of view on how it seeks to achieve a balance." intends Dempsey during his visit to Baghdad on Sunday, held talks with the government and military commanders of US commanders in Iraq, and also plans to visit the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, which was sent to the Persian Gulf as part of military operations in Iraq with the coalition led by the United States forces.

http://rudaw.net/arabic/middleeast/iraq/0703201526