Iraqi helicopter gunships struck suspected insurgent positions in Tikrit on Sunday as part of an offensive using tanks and commandos to weed out Sunni militants who had taken over the hometown of former dictator Saddam Hussein.
The insurgents appeared to have repelled the military’s initial push, and remained in control of the city on Sunday, but clashes were taking place in the northern neighborhood of Qadissiyah, two residents reached by telephone said.
Muhanad Saif al-Din, who lives in the city center, said he could see smoke rising from Qadissiyah, which borders the University of Tikrit, where troops brought by helicopter established a bridgehead two days ago. He said many of the militants in Tikrit had deployed to the city’s outskirts, apparently to blunt the military attack.
Military spokesman Qassim al-Moussawi told reporters Sunday that the military was in full control of the university and had raised the Iraqi flag over the campus.
“The battle has several stages. The security forces have cleared most of the areas of the first stage and we have achieved results,” al-Moussawi said. “It is a matter of time before we declare the total clearing (of Tikrit).”
Jawad al-Bolani, a security official in the provincial operation command, said the U.S. was sharing intelligence with Iraq and has played an “essential” role in the Tikrit offensive.
“The Americans are with us and they are an important part in the success we are achieving in and around Tikrit,” al-Bolani told The Associated Press.
Washington has sent 180 of 300 American troops President Obama has promised to help Iraqi forces. The U.S. is also flying manned and unmanned aircraft on reconnaissance missions over Iraq.
The U.S. military said it is flying 30 to 35 missions a day over Iraq, primarily on surveillance missions. “Some of those aircraft are armed,” Pentagon press secretary Rear Adm. John Kirby said Saturday. The flights included both drones and manned aircraft.
The offensive in Tikrit, about 95 miles north of Baghdad, came as heavy clashes between Iraqi security forces and insurgents killed at least 21 troops about 30 miles south of Baghdad. Officials says dozens of militants were killed or captured. Separately, Iraq’s air force carried out several airstrikes against the city of Mosul, which fell to militants earlier this month.
Tikrit is one of two major cities to fall to the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant.
Muhanad Saif al-Din said the city has emptied out in recent days as locals flee ahead of anticipated clashes.
“Tikrit has become a ghost town because a lot of people left over the past 72 hours, fearing random aerial bombardment and possible clashes as the army advances toward the city,” Saif al-Din said. “The few people who remain are afraid of possible revenge acts by Shiite militiamen who are accompanying the army. We are peaceful civilians and we do not want to be victims of this struggle.”
ISIL and its allies have overrun much of Iraq’s Sunni heartland, a vast territory stretching west and north from Baghdad to the Jordanian and Syrian borders. After a dramatic initial push, the onslaught appears to have slowed as the militants bump up against predominantly Shiite areas stretching south from Baghdad.
Iraq’s U.S.-trained and equipped military melted away in the face of the offensive, sapping morale and public confidence in its ability to stem the militant surge — let alone claw back lost ground. If successful, the Tikrit operation could help restore a degree of faith in the security forces.
It also would provide a boost to embattled Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who is fighting for his job as many former allies drop their support and Iraqis increasingly express doubts about his ability to unify the country.
Al-Maliki, however, has shown little inclination publicly to step aside and instead appears set on a third consecutive term as prime minister after his bloc won the most seats in April elections.
The United States and other world powers have pressed al-Maliki to reach out to the country’s Sunni and Kurdish minorities and have called for a more inclusive government that can address longstanding grievances.
Al-Maliki has widely been accused of monopolizing power and alienating Sunnis, who have long complained of being unfairly targeted by security forces.
Iraq forces look to claw back Tikrit from insurgents
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