US Urges Iraq Not to Redeploy Troops From Mosul to Baghdad
Colonel Steve Warren, the spokesperson for the coalition forces in Iraq called on Baghdad on Wednesday to keep its military forces deployed on the front-lines against Islamic State (ISIS) rather than redeploy them to protect Baghdad.
"Our advice to the Iraqi government is to keep the pressure up. The way to win is to expel ISIL completely from Iraq, to wipe them out," said Col. Warren.
"The Iraqis want to re-position some forces," to the Iraqi capital, Warren explained. "We said 'Hey, we think you should keep the forces out in the field.' And that's what they ended up doing."
"It's an Iraqi government decision as to when they begin or if they begin to pull forces back. Our advice to the Iraqi government is to keep the pressure up. We're going to support them in whatever decision they make, but our advice to them is to keep their foot on the gas, continue," he said.
His remarks follow a series of deadly suicide bombings in the capital Baghdad which have killed at least 200 civilians, making May the deadliest month so far this year.
"These attacks appear to be a shift in ISIL's tactics," Col. Warren said. "Over the last six months, our enemy has suffered a string of defeats because the ISF [Iraqi Security Forces] is proving increasingly effective. ISIL wants to throw punches that land. To do this, they appear to have chosen to revert to some of their terrorist roots."
http://aina.org/news/20160518180140.htm
Probably said in response to these suicide bombings in Iraq recently, a desperate tactic by ISIS.
