News / Iraq

Iraq: Abadi declares end of war on Daesh

Saturday, 09 December 2017 11:04 AM [ Last Update: Saturday, 09 December 2017 11:45 AM ]

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi (photo by AFP)

Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has declared the end of military operations against the Daesh terrorist group in the Arab country.

“Our forces are in complete control of the Iraqi-Syrian border and I therefore announce the end of the war against Daesh,” Abadi told a conference in Baghdad on Saturday.

The Iraqi armed forces later said in a statement that the country has been “totally liberated” from Daesh.

The announcement came after the Iraqi army soldiers, backed by allied fighters, managed to clear the western desert bordering Syria of the last pockets of Takfiri militants.

Iraqi forces advance through Salahuddin Province in the western desert bordering Syria after leaving the town of Baiji, on November 25, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

Abadi had reserved announcing an ultimate victory over Daesh until after those last small concentrations were cleansed.

Daesh began a terror campaign in Iraq in 2014, overrunning vast swathes in lightning attacks. Iraqi forces then launched operations to eliminate Daesh and retake lost territory, and last month, Iraqi forces liberated Rawa, the last remaining town in the grip of the terror outfit.

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