Iraqi Forces Struggle to Counter ISIS in Anbar Province

According to local leaders on the ground, Islamic State (ISIS) may be hours away from overtaking the Iraqi city of Ramadi, the capital of Anbar Province. Falih Essawi, the deputy leader of the Anbar Provincial Council, told CNN that government forces need help from Iraq’s government in Baghdad and the U.S.-led air coalition to save the city.

Anbar Province’s security deputy, Aziz Khalaf al-Tarmouz, echoed Essawi’s plea for help, stating, “Our security and tribal forces need more military consolidation and urgency,” asking “for airstrikes from the international coalition and Iraqi forces to support security teams there.”

Fighting and calls for help in Anbar coincide with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s trip on Tuesday to Washington, DC to meet with President Barack Obama. Al-Abadi asked for greater U.S. and international support in fighting ISIS, referring to airstrikes as well as money, supplies – especially tanks – and advisors. While Obama pledged $200 million in humanitarian aid for displaced peoples, he did not mention military support.

ISIS has already captured three villages – Sjariyah, Albu-Ghanim, and Soufiya – near Ramadi to the east, causing several residents to flee amid intense fighting between Iraqi troops and the jihadists. This advancement comes after ISIS gained control of areas north of Ramadi this past weekend. ISIS already holds ground to the south, only leaving the west, which Essawi asserts is being threatened. An Iraqi intelligence official backed this point saying ISIS is planning an attack from the west.

Fighting in Ramadi, a city only 70 miles west of Baghdad, comes after al-Abadi announced last week an offensive into Anbar, the country’s largest governorate, to counter ISIS forces who wield great control in many parts. The campaign follows the Iraqi military’s victory in Tikrit and is in part meant to keep the momentum going. Conversely, ISIS wants to make up for its defeat in Tikrit with aggressive gains in Anbar.

Anbar is Iraq’s Sunni heartland, and its high Sunni population may have significant effects on the fighting to come. ISIS targets Shiites to a greater extent than other Sunni terror groups like al-Qaeda and uses such sectarian tensions and violence to attract Sunnis to its cause. While Iranian-backed Shiite militias have helped Iraqi forces, including in Tikrit, and at least some Iraqi politicians and military men welcome the help, especially al-Abadi, the presence of Shia militias will likely worsen the government’s position in Anbar. Therefore, the Iraqi military may have to fight in Anbar on its own.

Some experts believe Anbar will be quite difficult to free from ISIS’s grasp, in large part due to many Sunni tribes’ reluctance, if not refusal, to fight with government forces against ISIS. The aforementioned Sunni-Shia dynamics play a large role in their calculations. ISIS is also entrenched in some parts of Anbar with experienced insurgents and fighters throughout the province.

Another area of conflict beyond Anbar is Basiji, a city in northern Iraq, home to the country’s largest oil refinery. Some Iraqi officials, however, believe that ISIS is attacking Basiji to distract Iraqi forces from Anbar. While Anbar is now the main source of fighting, Basiji is another place to watch going forward, especially given its oil facilities. Selling oil has been a major source of funding for ISIS.

After a victory in Tikrit, Iraqi forces appeared to be feeling confident, but fighting in Anbar is a rude awakening that the situation in Iraq is still dire. Despite the Tikrit setback, ISIS is aggressively seeking territory, showing few signs of weakening and no indication of giving up. Wednesday’s events in Ramadi show ISIS’s efforts to repair their reputation in a big way in an area of strategic importance. The Iraqis want more U.S. airstrikes and equipment to counter this aggression, and it would be wise to give them what they want. Otherwise, in the words of Essawi, “Just Allah knows if we will survive this.”