Iraq kicks off historic Fallujah operation against Islamic State
Iraqi security forces launched a military operation in Fallujah, the Islamic State's last major stronghold in Anbar province; if the operation succeeds, it will deal a serious blow to the extremist organization.
Iraqi security forces have launched Operation Break Terrorism in collaboration with the Shiite-dominated Popular Mobilization Units and local Sunni tribal mobilization forces to drive the Islamic State (IS) from the key town of Fallujah, the last major IS stronghold in western Anbar province.
Fallujah, long a bastion of anti-government insurgent groups, was one of the first areas in Iraq to fall to IS and its allies in January 2014, months before the group overran Mosul and other Sunni-dominated parts of the country.
Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi ordered the launch of the operation in the early hours of May 23, saying, "There is no option for Daesh [IS] except to flee," referring to the group by its common Arabic acronym.
The operation was launched from the southeast, southwest, northwest and northern flanks of Fallujah, according to Karim al-Nuri, a spokesman for the mobilization units who spoke to Al-Monitor via phone from the Karmah area to the southeast of Fallujah, some 60 kilometers (37 miles) west of Baghdad.
