Published time: June 21, 2014 14:04
Edited time: June 21, 2014 20:01
Edited time: June 21, 2014 20:01
Mehdi Army fighters loyal to Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr march during a parade in Najaf, June 21, 2014. (Reuters/Alaa Al-Marjani)
Thousands of
Shiite militia marched through Baghdad, Kirkuk and other Iraqi cities in a show
of the government's force. However, extremists are just winning more ground:
the Sunni fighters of ISIS have seized a town on the border with Syria.
Powerful Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr called on his
followers to take part in a military parade on Saturday. Hosts of Shiite Iraqis
answered the call, flooding the center of Baghdad and other cities across the
country.
Around 50,000 people joined the rally in the country's
capital, some armed with weapons including Kalashnikov assault rifles,
shotguns, Dragunov sniper rifles, light machineguns and rocket launchers. They
brandished banners with slogans reading “We sacrifice for you, oh
Iraq," "No, no to terrorism," and"No, no to
America.”
As volunteers gathered in Baghdad, Sunni militants led
by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS/ISIL) pushed back faltering
government forces, seizing control of crucial towns on the Iraq-Syria border.
Killing over 30 members of the Iraqi security forces, ISIS fighters attacked
the town of al-Qaima and succeeded in taking over the town, which is home to
250,000, and the border crossing to neighboring Syria.
The militant group also made significant gains on the
other side of the frontier, bringing them closer to accomplishing their aim of
creating an Islamic state straddling national borders.
The border town is located on a strategic supply
route, the loss of which would be a significant blow to Iraqi Prime Minister
Nouri al-Maliki. ISIS has capitalized on the ongoing civil war in Syria to
gather weapons and thousands of fresh recruits from around the world. Full
control of the border zone would mean potential free passage from Syria into
Iraq for the militants.
To counter the swelling ranks of the Sunni militants,
Iraq’s government has officially asked the White House to deploy airstrikes in
the region. In response, the White House issued a statement, saying there was
no purely military solution to Iraq’s problems, and that it would consider a
range of options.
As a preliminary measure, the US has deployed 300
additional military personnel to Baghdad to“assess how we can best train,
advise and support Iraqi security forces going forward.”
Mehdi Army fighters loyal to Shi'ite cleric Moqtada
al-Sadr march during a parade in Najaf, June 21, 2014. (Reuters/Alaa
Al-Marjani)
Obama also voiced criticism of Iraq’s leadership, suggesting
that Al-Maliki has endangered the country by ignoring the needs of the
country’s Sunni population.
“I don’t think that there’s any secret that, right now
at least, there is deep division between Sunni, Shia and Kurdish leaders,” Obama said Thursday. In addition, the Wall
Street Journal reported that Washington was preparing to consult with the
Iranian government over a solution to the crisis in Iraq.
The ISIS-led militants began to show signs of
fragmentation on Saturday as fighters from ISIS and the Army of the Men of the
Naqshbandiyah (JRTN) turned on each other in Kirkuk. At least 17 people were
killed in the ensuing violence.
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