The Tale of Two Media Outlets???
Kirkuk offensive: Thousands flee as Iraqi army advances
Thousands of people are leaving the Iraqi city of Kirkuk as the Iraqi army advances on Kurdish military positions around the city.
Federal forces, backed by Shia militia, have launched a major offensive over two fronts on Monday, aimed at retaking the Kurdish-held city.
Al Jazeera's Charles Stratford, reporting from the outskirts of Kirkuk, said an increasing number of Kirkuk residents were trying to flee.
"Thousands of cars are filling the roads leading out of Kirkuk and the numbers are increasing. There is a lot of fear in the city [due to] the Iraqi army's advance."
The Iraqi army said it has seized control of the city's airport, in addition to an oil field, the strategic K1 military base and the Taza Khormatu district southeast of Kirkuk.
Kurdish forces known as the Peshmerga were digging in at the edge of the airport after withdrawing from their positions outside the northern city.
Hundreds of armed Kurdish residents were taking up positions inside the city, anticipating an attack.
READ MORE: Iraqi forces launch 'major' Kirkuk operation
Residents of the multi-ethnic city, home to about a million Arabs, Kurds , Turkmen and Christians, stayed inside and reported hearing sporadic booms which they said sounded like shelling and rocket fire.
The Kurdistan Region Security Council said in a statement that the Peshmerga destroyed at least five Humvee armoured vehicles being used by the state-sanctioned militias, following the attack south of the city.
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'Protecting national unity'
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said in a statement that the offensive was aimed at protecting national unity.
"It is my constitutional duty to work for the benefit of the citizens, and to protect our national unity that came under threat of fragmentation as a result of the referendum that was organised by the Kurdish region," Abadi said.
complete article at :
Today's Headline from NBC:
Iranian General Helped Iraqis Seize Kirkuk From U.S. Allies.
A few days after the Trump administration announced a new, get-tough approach to Iran, one of that country's top military commanders and the armed Shiite militias he supports played a key role in the seizure of an important Iraqi city from the U.S.-backed Kurds, according to Iraqi, Kurdish and American officials.
Former U.S. national security officials told NBC News the Iranian-brokered seizure of oil-rich Kirkuk by the Iraqi government and its militia partners, which heightens the risk of civil war, amounts to an embarrassing strategic blow to the U.S. at the hands of Iran.
"It is a catastrophic defeat for the United States and a fantastic victory for Iran's Revolutionary Guard, proving that Qassem Soleimani gets his way once again," said Ali Khedery, a former senior adviser on Iraq policy in the Bush and Obama administrations.
full article at:
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/mideast/iranian-general-helped-iraqis-seize-kirkuk-u-s-allies-n811026
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Does anyone recall how the Iranian backed Militias came to be in Iraq, and why the Iraqi government became entangled and dependent on Iranian support?