Tikrit, free of Islamic State group, in ruins
5 April 2015 11:46 PM GMT
In Iraq’s Tikrit, liberation from the Islamic State group comes at a heavy price, both in loss of life and in the sheer devastation the militants leave in their wake. Much of Tikrit, Saddam Hussein’s hometown and once a bustling city north of Baghdad, now lies in ruins.
Islamic State extremists captured it during a blitz last June that also seized large chunks of northern and western Iraq, along with a huge swath of land in neighboring Syria. After a nearly 10-month Islamic State occupation, it took Iraqi forces and their allies, including Iranian-backed Shia militias, a month of ferocious street battles to win the city back. They declared victory in Tikrit on Wednesday, and US-led coalition airstrikes also helped turn the tide in the final weeks of the battle.
On Saturday, the houses that still stand are pocked with bullet holes and Tikrit’s streets are lined with potholes where mortars slammed down. The provincial headquarters in the downtown now adorned with Shiite militia flags in place of the Islamic State group’s black banner is burned from fire and damaged from heavy fighting.
On Friday, Iraqi prime minister Haider al-Abadi warned that the military will start arresting and
prosecuting those who loot abandoned Tikrit properties. He also urged security forces to quickly ensure that normalcy is restored so that Tikrit’s residents, most of whom fled the Islamic State onslaught, can return home.
The looting was first reported within hours of the military victory but authorities have refrained from blaming anyone. A number of human rights organizations have accused the Shiite militias of carrying out revenge attacks on Sunnis in newly-recaptured towns, or destroying their homes so they can never return.
Some Shia militias have set up checkpoints on the southern approaches of Tikrit, and stop passing cars to check for looted goods. Government officials told a mass grave was found on the camp’s grounds with bodies of up to 1,700 Iraqi soldiers killed by the extremists in Tikrit and northern Iraq last June.
Islamic State extremists captured it during a blitz last June that also seized large chunks of northern and western Iraq, along with a huge swath of land in neighboring Syria. After a nearly 10-month Islamic State occupation, it took Iraqi forces and their allies, including Iranian-backed Shia militias, a month of ferocious street battles to win the city back. They declared victory in Tikrit on Wednesday, and US-led coalition airstrikes also helped turn the tide in the final weeks of the battle.
On Saturday, the houses that still stand are pocked with bullet holes and Tikrit’s streets are lined with potholes where mortars slammed down. The provincial headquarters in the downtown now adorned with Shiite militia flags in place of the Islamic State group’s black banner is burned from fire and damaged from heavy fighting.
On Friday, Iraqi prime minister Haider al-Abadi warned that the military will start arresting and
prosecuting those who loot abandoned Tikrit properties. He also urged security forces to quickly ensure that normalcy is restored so that Tikrit’s residents, most of whom fled the Islamic State onslaught, can return home.
The looting was first reported within hours of the military victory but authorities have refrained from blaming anyone. A number of human rights organizations have accused the Shiite militias of carrying out revenge attacks on Sunnis in newly-recaptured towns, or destroying their homes so they can never return.
Some Shia militias have set up checkpoints on the southern approaches of Tikrit, and stop passing cars to check for looted goods. Government officials told a mass grave was found on the camp’s grounds with bodies of up to 1,700 Iraqi soldiers killed by the extremists in Tikrit and northern Iraq last June.
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