IS bans mourning ceremonies for dead members to keep spirits high

Kirkuk (IraqiNews.com) The Islamic State have banned the holding of mourning ceremonies for its dead members in Kirkuk in order not to demoralize its fighters, a government source was quoted saying Sunday.

Alsumaria News quoted the source saying that policing squads from the group in the town of Hawija, southwest of Kirkuk, have begun to ensure there were no mourning gatherings, adding that the group deems the events as both unreligious undermining members’ morales.

The source, who asked not to be identified, said the group’s media also began to report its readiness with three heavily-armored divisions to defend Hawija against potential offensives by Iraqi security forces. He said, however, the news were possibly fabricated to raise fighters’ morales.

Islamic State has held Hawija since 2014, when the group emerged to proclaim a self-styled “Caliphate” in a third of Iraq and Syria. Local tribal leaders and politicians from Kirkuk have mounted pressure on the Iraqi government to hasten with invading Hawija, suggesting that its people were experiencing a humanitarian crisis under the group’s rule. Having concluded its campaign in Mosul, IS’s largest bastion in Iraq which was recaptured earlier this month, the Iraqi government is planning to launch further offensives at other IS pockets across Iraq, including Hawija.