700 Iraqi soldiers in ISIL trap: Anbar official

An Iraqi official in the militancy-hit Anbar province says ISIL Takfiri militants have trapped around 700 Iraqi soldiers in an area in the western part of the country.

Faleh al-Issawi deputy head of Iraq’s Anbar provincial council said on Tuesday that the Iraqi soldiers have been under siege over the past few days.

Issawi further noted the Iraqi fighter jets have conducted a number of airstrikes against the militants in the area, saying the operations, however, could not result in the lifting of the siege.

He also called on senior Iraqi officials, including Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, to replace some commanders in the Iraqi army, warning that if the Iraqi authorities do not take due measures in that regard, they will suffer defeats in Anbar, in the city of Mosul, and in the northern province of Salahuddin.

Separately, Ahmed Khalaf al-Dulaimi, the governor of Iraq’s Anbar province, also said that the Iraqi forces have been trapped on a road near Albu Etha in the western part of Ramadi.

He further noted that the soldiers were trapped after they ran out of ammunition and food.

He also pointed out that the Iraqi army is working on a plan to end the siege with the help of the Iraqi Air Force. He, however, did not provide any further details on the time the plan will be implemented.

Al-Anbar Province, which borders war-ravaged Syria, has been a major stronghold of the ISIL Takfiri elements and continues to be largely controlled by the terror group.

The Iraqi army has recently scored major gains in the province with Iraqi troops repelling a significant attack by the terror group on the strategic town of Amriyat al-Fallujah, 40 kilometers west of the capital, Baghdad. An ISIL terrorist leader was among those killed in the Iraqi army operation.

On Monday, al-Abadi underscored that Iraqi government troops and volunteer forces are completely capable of defeating ISIL terrorists.

The ISIL Takfiri terrorists currently control parts of Syria and Iraq. They have threatened all communities, including Shias, Sunnis, Kurds, Christians, Izadi Kurds and others, as they continue their atrocities in Iraq.

Senior Iraqi officials have blamed Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and some other Persian Gulf Arab states for the growing terrorism in their country.