IS militants infiltration from Hawija toward Mutaibija on the rise: Official
Islamic State’s militants. File photo
Speaking to AlSumaria News on Wednesday, Mohamed Daifan al-Ebeidi, head of Al-Azeem council, said, “IS militants sneaking from Hawija toward Mutaibija, on the borders between Diyala and Salahuddin, has increased recently depending on ground passageways.
Transferring the militants from Hawija to Mutaibija, according to Ebeidi, “is an evidence on escaping toward regions of complicated geography to hide.”
The group, he said, has become aware of its loss at Hawija battle, “which urges it to escape toward remote places.”
Both Hawija and Mutaibija are linked through snaky passageways in Hamreen basin, which helped the militant group to transfer tens of its members over the past few months.
Hawija and other neighboring regions, west of Kirkuk, have been held by IS since mid-2014, when the group emerged to proclaim an Islamic “caliphate” in Iraq and Syria. The group executed dozens of civilians and security members there, forcing thousands to flee homes.
Further reinforcements from the Federal Police were sent earlier this month from Baghdad to the town, as the military command declared, late August, the end of operations in Tal Afar, the militants’ last haven west of Nineveh, and the approach of the launch of offensives for Hawija.