Mustafa Habib

With ISIS Defeated, An Iraqi Militia Turns to Mine Clearing and Social Work

The fight against extremists is almost over and one of the country’s Shiite militias is doing good deeds and eschewing politics. Is the al-Abbas Combat Brigade too good to be true?

Mustafa Habib
От Mustafa Habib
Combat engineering team of the #PMF began work on removing IEDs from roads leading to the northern border crossing with Iran, starting from east Basra province. (Photo: Official Twitter of Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units)

For the people of Basra, unexploded ordnances and long-forgotten mines have been an ongoing concern; the explosives were left over from historical conflicts, such as the war between Iraq and Iran. Recently they have been getting help from a slightly unexpected quarter: Fighters from one of the country’s often-controversial Shiite Muslim militias

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ISIS Maybe Regrouping for a Comeback in Iraq

The honeymoon is over: After celebrating victory over ISIS, Iraqi security forces now have to deal with a new wave of fighters who prepared to start a guerrilla war.

Mustafa Habib
От Mustafa Habib
An ISIS convoy prepares for an attack on Iraqi military positions in Nineveh in Northeastern Iraq. (Chris Tomson/AMN)

Over the past month there has been an increase in attacks by extremists in various parts of Iraq, but in particular, on the outskirts of cities that were previously controlled by the extremist group known as the Islamic State. “We have recorded dozens of terrorist activities in various parts of the country,” a senior officer in the defence ministry

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Iraq Defeated ISIS, but the Battle Against Extremism Rages On

The military campaign against the Islamic State is almost over. But now, locals and politicians alike say, the Iraqi government must work to ensure they cannot return to recruit more followers.

Mustafa Habib
От Mustafa Habib
A suspected ISIS fighter sits in a basement as Iraqi forces continue their advance against Islamic State militants in the Old City of Mosul, Iraq, July 3, 2017. (AP/Felipe Dana)

Even as Iraq’s pro-government forces close in on Rawa, one of the very last strongholds of the extremist group known as the Islamic State, ordinary Iraqis everywhere are wondering where the extremists will turn up next. A series of recent attacks and arrests are cause for concern. In Kirkuk, the headquarters of the Shia Muslim militias in that

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