‘Game Over.’ Iraqi Forces See Beginning of the End for ISIS
6, 2017
HAWIJA, Iraq — The jubilant outpouring that erupted in the heart of Hawija on Friday, the day after Iraqi forces claimed victory there, celebrated more than the fact
that the Islamic State militants had finally been routed from the city, their last major urban stronghold in Iraq.
General Aboda said all militants captured in Hawija were turned over to Iraqi military intelligence officers.
Col. Kareem Aboud of a federal police SWAT unit, who was providing security for food deliveries to displaced Hawija district residents, said he was not convinced
that the Islamic State was on the verge of complete defeat in Iraq.
For many of the Shiite Muslim militiamen, who sped through the streets in pickups, flying militia colors
and blaring religious music on loudspeakers, and the federal paramilitary police, who feasted on mutton and rice, their swift two-week victory represented the beginning of the end for militants who just three years ago ruled a third of Iraq.
Kareem Gita, a Shiite militiaman who commanded a checkpoint in the shattered city center Friday, said many militants had lost the will to fight.
The military coalition in Hawija included Iranian-trained militiamen, federal police officers and local Sunni tribal fighters.