Iraq News
Terrorism

ISIS holds Rawa residents hostage

By Khalid al-Taie

An Iraqi soldier greets residents from villages near Rawa who fled the 'Islamic State of Iraq and Syria' in recent weeks. [Photo from the Joint Operations Command Facebook page]

An Iraqi soldier greets residents from villages near Rawa who fled the 'Islamic State of Iraq and Syria' in recent weeks. [Photo from the Joint Operations Command Facebook page]

The "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS) is holding residents in the western Anbar province city of Rawa hostage as Iraqi forces prepare to advance, a local official told Diyaruna Tuesday (November 7th).

Iraqi forces on Friday liberated al-Qaim, the biggest town under ISIS control in Iraq.

The fall of al-Qaim leaves ISIS fighters in Iraq holding just the smaller neighbouring town of Rawa and surrounding pockets of barren desert along the Euphrates river.

Iraqi forces are now besieging Rawa from several sides in preparation to storm it once the search for militants in al-Qaim is complete and the area is cleared of explosives.

"There are about 250 families still besieged by ISIS in Rawa," the city's mayor Hussein Ali al-Akidi told Diyaruna.

The militants are holding those families hostage, forcing them to remain in their homes and not to leave for any reason, he said.

"They have also told them that they will kill any person who tries to contact or help the security forces," he said.

Al-Akidi expressed concern over the fate of the trapped residents, stressing that "they are in a very difficult situation in all respects".

Hit-and-run tactics

Sources have confirmed that ISIS fighters have dug up secret trenches and passages between residents’ houses and planted explosive devices on main streets, al-Akidi said.

Through these measures, the group aims to hinder the Iraqi forces' advance "with no regard for the lives of local residents", he said.

There are only dozens of ISIS militants who remain in Rawa, according to these sources. They mainly use motorcycles to move from one place to another in order to avoid airstrikes.

Extremists often shell forces stationed around the city with mortars from within populated neighbourhoods before fleeing and going into hiding, al-Akidi said, adding that by doing this, they are exploiting the difficulty to respond directly to the fire sources.

They also take advantage of the fact that Rawa opens to a vast desert extending north to Ninawa province and west to the border with Syria, he said.

"Many families have managed to escape from Rawa in recent weeks prior to the battle to liberate al-Qaim," said al-Akidi.

About 138 families have fled towards the city of al-Rutba and have been housed in the Kilo 18 camp west of Ramadi and the Tourist City camp in Habbaniya, he said.

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