Question: On 17/10/2016, the start of the battle to regain Mosul was announced, what is intended by this? How can we understand the previous statements of the American officials who were expecting the battle of Mosul to take place after many years? Will this be the end of ISIS, if they are removed from Mosul? Why was there bickering between the Iraqi government and the Turkish regime? And why is Turkey insisting on participation in the war?
Answer:
1- Scruitinising the current events one can view it as an episode in a series of episodes aiming for the completion of the dismantling of Iraq to establish a region for the Sunnis and another for the Shiites after the Kurdish region has become strikingly visible. This policy was not initiated by America today nor since the occupation of Iraq, but before that, since the time America imposed the no-fly zones on northern Iraq in 1991, where the Kurdistan region has become a quasi-state! When America occupied Iraq in 2003, the regime that was set by Bremer, to govern occupied Iraq was on a sectarian basis of sectarian and religious quotas.
Bremer set up the so-called Iraqi Governing Council in July; and in August 2003, he appointed a preparatory constitutional committee composed of 25 members. The Committee formulated a draft constitution making Iraq a federal state based on regions such as the Kurdistan region, and then the general elections were held to vote for it on January 31, 2005, to legitimize the constitutional process as stipulated in the Transitional Administrative Law. Despite the twisted methods that used and included violence, only 58% of registered voters actually voted, and so this constitution was passed! From the articles of this Constitution include:
Article 1 of the Constitution of the Republic of Iraq for the year 2005 states that “the Republic of Iraq is a federal state”. Article 116: “The federal system in the Republic of Iraq constitutes decentralized capital and regions and provinces and local administrations.” Article 117 / I ruled that “this Constitution recognizes the execution of the Kurdistan region and the existing federal region powers.” Looking at the authorities of this region, it reflects the extent of the dismantling of Iraq in the near future! And in particular, Article 119 states: “the possibility of introducing other regions” … So America has sown the seeds of the dismantling of Iraq through this notorious, even worse, Constitution.
2- America has felt vainglory after the success of the adoption of the Constitution of the dismantling of Iraq, and assigned its agents, at the top of their priorities to prepare a general atmosphere for its acceptance, but they did not succeed. Areas that became known as Shiite and Sunni did not have separatist activity even under the name of regions, this labeling of areas as Shiite and Sunni did not even exist and was strange to the people… America began to create the atmosphere following its method so it sought out Al-Maliki, a person saturated with hatred against Islam and Muslims, and appointed him as the prime minister in 20/5/2006. His primary mission was to find hostility between Sunnis and Shiites in a way that escalates major discord between them! Its puppet Al-Maliki was an excellent sectarian, he provoked and agitated the others, the atmosphere and the regions became ripe for the split, he has been successful in this role.
Al Maliki planted enmity with Sunnis and Kurds until the partition of Iraq has become the demand of many people … Al-Maliki succeeded in creating this hostility and in generating an atmosphere for the division of the regions, which is the main mission he was hired for as prime minister by America. This was the reason why America extended his ruling period until September 8th, 2014. This period of his reign was dark. When America had left in its military form on December 2011, while in reality remained in the security and political control. The tree of sedition (fitna) had thrived, Al-Maliki increased its evil fruits, by his distinctive oppression and arrogance, every time it died down, he would ignite it again with his provocative actions and statements … and the sectarian incitement was escalated and gave birth to the creation of armed Shiite militias.
America had found the man for the job, Al-Maliki, to deepen the rift between the Muslims, he deliberately provoked the Sunnis, with all his hatred, cunningness, oppression and control … If people demanded the lifting of injustice or of their rights, he would tyrannize them, and reject any right belonging to them. As with the people of the Sunni areas when they organized peacefully in protest in 2012 with regular demands concerning the lifting of injustice against them and the release of their prisoners, especially women, and to stop the random night raids. It did not including any demand to overthrow the regime, but Al-Maliki’s government dismissed them, and regarded them as demands serving the terrorists, and he began to crush peaceful protests to increase tension among the people of this region to demand secession or the establishment of a federal region. Al-Maliki and his government did not implement this without the behest or with the consent of his American masters because they control him. Besides that, some Shiite movements called for the establishment of the territory of the Shiites in the south, along the lines of the Kurdistan region even before the outbreak of the peaceful protests in Anbar. It did not stop at this point, but neighboring countries raced in emphasizing the sectarian division … all in the implementation of US policy, which does not want a united Iraq, but wants torn rival hostile regions, killing each other! Each grabbing on tightly to have a separate region, and thus turned into public demands.
3- In this atmosphere, maneuvers by ISIS began to gain grounds in Mosul, America saw that if they entered in this atmosphere with Shiites militias, it will deepen the rift further and harsher, hence will serve the American goal of increasing discord between Sunnis and Shiites, so it made Al-Maliki pull the army of Mosul, leaving his weapons and bank funds behind, and this is what took place… In June 2014, the fall of Mosul to ISIS was announced; however there were frequent reports that the Iraqi army withdrew without fighting a real battle, rather that it surrendered its weapons, hardware, and clothes and left the money in banks in Mosul, and its army soldiers, officers and security forces fled, despite their superiority in numbers and equipment. Everyone began to question the matter and refer to the existence of collusion and deliberate surrendering of the area for specific purposes. This opinion of collusion was so strong to the extent that Al-Maliki confessed that what happened was a plot. (“What Mosul witnessed was a conspiracy,” (Al-Maliki page on Facebook, the American Al-Hurra, 18/8/2015) However he tried to distance himself from it, when it is linked to him, he was the prime minister and the chief commander of the army and the first in charge of the battle! This was repeated in Ramadi: the withdrawal of the stationed troops, the so-called golden group without resistance. Demands to account Al-Maliki and those responsible began, but the subject was covered up and thus the lid was closed.
And it seems that America felt the need to close the subject because its hand is immersed in the withdrawal of the army because it wanted to facilitate the existence of ISIS, on the grounds that it is Sunni, its presence next to the Shiite militia will increase the rift between Sunnis and Shiites for the creation of a regional federation. This is the reason why it ordered the army to withdraw to facilitate the entry of ISIS. Not only this, but America has rejected the bombing of ISIS when it entered Mosul, Obama has stated on 13/06/2014 that Washington “will not participate in military action in the absence of a political plan offered by the Iraqis.” This is despite the security agreement that concluded between the United States and Iraq, and despite the Iraqi government’s request to do so, as Iraqi Foreign Minister Zebari said in Jeddah late Wednesday, 18/6/2014, “Baghdad asked Washington to target the insurgents with air strikes”.
This was confirmed by General Dempsey, the chairman of the U.S. military’s Joint Chiefs of Staff in a congressional hearing, which means that America was not in a hurry to intervene, instead it was delaying intervention until the atmosphere became ripe for the implementation of the regions’ projects by fueling the situation between the Sunnis and the Shiite so both sides agree on having separate regions, as in Iraqi Kurdistan, afterwards the United States will order the fight on ISIS and drive it out of Mosul.
The class-conscious politicians are aware of this and follow up with this. We mention here the news reported in “Iraq today,” website dated 06/12/2015 from high-level diplomatic sources that leaked the news to it directly related to the American condition to end ISIS presence in the country, it stated: “The acceptance of the establishment of the three main regions that subject to a federal rule in Baghdad is the basic condition to resolve the Daesh file (ISIS) and to cleanse Iraq of it and end all secondary powers that replace the power in Baghdad now, especially the militias led by Iranian orders.” The same sources reported, “… Washington has vowed to take over the protection of the new federal government in Iraq with the support of the Security Council.”
Thus, the United States proceeded ensued to Al-Maliki with his sectarianism, and utilized him to provoke the Sunnis to create enmity between them and the Shiites and then to tear up Iraq in regions with a weak link with the center, that will soon be cut off and broken. It also took advantage of ISIS’s view of the Shiites, and it facilitated their entry into Mosul to increase the rift between the two groups. America took advantage of ISIS again when it announced a Khilafah after entering Mosul. America focused on its actions of killing, burning and displacement of civilians and tried to link these acts to the Khilafah, but Allah (swt) foiled their actions, and people knew that Al-Baghdadi’s Khilafah is only nonsense and that the Khilafah that Allah has obliged and is the glad-tiding of the Prophet (saw) for its return is the truth and is just that people will migrate to for its security and safety, and it will spread the good not only among its residents but also to the world.
4- The Turkish presence in northern Iraq is also for the same purpose i.e. to allow the Sunnis to “flourish” in Iraq like Iran allows the Shiites to flourish … and so it contributes to the regional situation in encouraging regionalization! The entry of Turkey was to deepen the rift, and it appears as if it is protecting the Sunnis in return for the protection of Iran for the Shiites … All this to achieve one goal: to facilitate the division.
As for the insistence of Turkey to participate in this battle, and the war of words and exchanges between Erdogan and Al Abadi on the subject, and Erdogan’s amazement at the Iraqi government’s demand to withdraw the Turkish troops north-east of Mosul in the Ba’shiqah camp… with the knowledge of the Iraqi government that this matter is not in the Iraqi government’s hands nor it is in the Turkish government’s hands, but it is in accordance with the US policy to make Erdogan’s appears like he is saving the Sunnis, through his word battling with Abadi. Then he encourages the American project of the “regions” (territories), as Abadi does too. He raises the subject of Turkish troops excluding the other forces that fill the ground and sky of Iraq! In order to gain sympathy from the Shiite … and the two are working for the same purpose, i.e. to increase tensions between Sunnis and Shiites to serve the American purpose to dismantle Iraq to form regions.
And the continuation of this bickering: whether it continues or stops is determined by the American project. This is not the first time that the Iraqi government demands the withdrawal of Turkish troops. It has called for it at the end of last year and the Arab League met for this and endorsed it and raised it to the Security Council to adopt a resolution condemning Turkey and demanding it to withdraw, but it was like a storm that later pacified! Thus the involvement of Turkish troops is for this purpose; of the implementation of the American project of “regions”. This is no longer a secret, Erdogan has stated it, and urged the creation of a region for Mosul, like the one in the North, he blames those who agreed to the founding of the local government in northern Iraq, i.e. the Kurdistan region, but they did not agree for a similar one in the Mosul region. He stated in his speech at Beştepe regarding the development of Mosul, “… those who voted yes in the local government in northern Iraq, did not say yes for the same thing in Mosul.” (The Time Turk Newspaper, 18/10/2016)
5- As for why this insistence to have the Mosul war now, unlike previous American statements, the issue is as follows:
America was of the view that the time is not ripe for the war on ISIS and to drive it out of Mosul, and Obama was not in a hurry to bring this to an end in his term, even some American officials declared that this will take years … However things happened that made Obama accelerate this. Obama wanted to end his ominous term successfully or with slight success to be ascribed to him … yet he was relying on Syria through the cohorts of Iran and its militias and the intensification of the Russian aerial bombardment. Nonetheless, it seems that he lost hope or almost did because of the great resilience of the people of Syria, particularly of Aleppo. Therefore, he turned to Iraq, to Mosul that perhaps he finds a flicker of success or something of a success! He proceeded hurriedly to enter Mosul and even left out pockets behind him, including Al-Hawija. The Wall Street Journal said that the advancing Iraqi forces towards Mosul left out some pockets controlled by ISIS, such as Hawija, in the center of the province of Kirkuk, which allows ISIS fighters to possibility counter attack in other areas in Iraq. The newspaper pointed out in a report that Iraqi leaders did not make the restoration of Hawija among their priorities, although it is located in the road between the capital, Baghdad and Mosul, the second largest city in the country. A Shiite militia leader in Kirkuk – Maitham al-Zaidi – described Hawija as “a knife in the side of the north of Iraq,” saying that the government rushed to restore Mosul before Hawija, for political reasons, and international pressure. (Al-Jazeera, 28/10/2016)
Thus the battle of Mosul began on 17/10/2016. It was stated that there will be a participation of 140,000 soldiers from the Iraqi army and Peshmerga forces and forces from the crowd of tribes, and nationals, and others. A spokesman for the US Department of Defense Peter Cook said: “The international coalition led by Washington is supporting the Iraqi forces fully during the Battle of Mosul,” and referred to “the presence of American troops in the background lines in the battle of the restoration of Mosul in order to provide assistance and logistical support for the Iraqi army and Peshmerga forces.” (Reuters, 17/10/2016) The United States had announced late last September that it would increase the number of its troops in Iraq by adding another 600 troops to the 4,400 upon the request of the Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi. The battle is meant to continue during the American election campaign and beyond, until the end of Obama’s term, so he achieves recorded victories for him and the Democrats in American history. Although the battle of Mosul is not easy because of the disputes between internal forces, and because of the disputes between regional powers (Turkey and Iran), this disputes feuds and calms the fight in Mosul. Although as long as the influential factor in these forces is the same factor (America), the disputes are not expected to stop the battle for long, until required by US policy.
6- America has given a role to Europe, which is not independent, but rather as part of the alliance, particularly France and Britain, so that they are controlled under the American-led alliance, so as not to be distant and disrupt America’s goals behind the war, which is the dismantling of Iraq into regions. As usual, France tries to be prominent in such events, retaliation to the ISIS attack in France. It held a conference in Paris on 20/10/2016 to discuss “the political future of the city of Mosul,” and invited the foreign ministers and representatives of twenty countries and organizations for the protection of civilians. France called for another conference for defense ministers in the international coalition against ISIS on 25/10/2016. Following this meeting the US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter stated, as his country is the leader of the alliance that discussions focused on how to end ISIS control of Raqa … and what can the Alliance do to speed up the implementation of the plan and how to protect the territory of the Member States from ISIS attacks was reached (Aljazeera 26/10/2016). This points to the leadership of the United States to these countries where it talks about protecting the territory of the Member States from ISIS attacks.
7- Will we see an end of ISIS if Mosul fell out of its hand? It does not seem so, but the organization will resort to war, to strike and run, here and there, and continue its activity from outside of the cities. It was expelled out from the center of Ramadi, yet remained around it. And so if it is removed out of Mosul, it will remain hovering around it, only to come back as it was
before 2014, and as it is now practically, an armed organization fighting in the deserts and mountains and in the outskirts of towns and villages. Due to its lack of political consciousness, it might undertake actions it sees in its advantage, but it might be exploited to the interests of the Kaffir colonial states, and perhaps it realizes it.
8- As for America, it is not likely to abandon its plan to divide Iraq into three federations, it even became the country’s policy with regards to Iraq. In 2006, the US Congress had approved the project of dividing Iraq into three federal regions, Kurdish, Sunni and Shiite, but the decision was not binding for the President. However, President Bush announced that day “the conditions are not favorable for the implementation of the resolution.” The draft resolution was presented by Senator Joseph Biden, who later became vice president to US President Obama in 2009. Biden actively worked towards the implementation of the resolution without a formal announcement, and Obama handed him the Iraq file. America drafted the Iraqi constitution on this basis. So their actions now and in the future are moving towards its implementation. Reclaiming Mosul will be followed by the search in the political formula for the management of these areas, the so-called Sunni areas, which is the hardest episode because the Shiite areas are less difficult. However, it is not easy to pass this project, because in Iraq there are men faithful to Allah (swt), true to the Messenger of Allah (saw), and will not accept the division of their country, and will stand in the face of such projects to thwart them, Allah willing, Allah is Strong and Mighty.
9- In conclusion, O people of Iraq O people of Rafidain, we address you as we did before: Islam had united you for centuries, and it shaded you with its banner for a long time, and you were strong and dignified, sharing the good together, and fighting evil together. Your land is the land of victories, the land of Qadisiyah, the land of Buwaib, the land of Harun Al-Rashid, Al Mutassim, and Salahuddin, the land of former and subsequent conquerors, Allah willing. A unified Iraq is strong with its people, and a divided Iraq is weak by its dividers… If the Kurds thought that the presence of the Kurdistan region or state of Kurdistan will bring glory to them, it will not exceed a short term, but it will be their destruction after a while… If the Sunnis thought that the creation of a region for them in northern and western Iraq will bring them a better life, it will not span a long period, and moreover it will bring them further misery and hardship. If the Shia thought that having their own region in the south will create for them a force of tyranny, it would be only for a short time, and then matters will reverse to bring weakness and humiliation.
O people of Rafidain,
Reject sectarianism and racism: «دَعُوهَا فَإِنَّهَا مُنْتِنَةٌ» “…leave it, it is rotten” (Narrated by Bukhari on the authority of Jabir)
Reject sectarian titles, and cling to the name that Allah (swt) chose for us: (هُوَ سَمَّاكُمُ الْمُسْلِمِينَ) “He called you Muslims” [Al-Hajj: 78].
So return to Him (swt) and hold fast to Him, you will gain the glory, otherwise humiliation will strike you from everywhere.
(إِنَّ فِي ذَلِكَ لَذِكْرَى لِمَنْ كَانَ لَهُ قَلْبٌ أَوْ أَلْقَى السَّمْعَ وَهُوَ شَهِيدٌ)
“Indeed in that a reminder for whoever has a heart or who listens while he is present [in mind].” [Qaf: 37]
29 Muharram 1438 AH
30/10/2016 CE
