Iraqi Prime Minister Announces Complete Liberation of Tal Afar

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced on Thursday, September 9, that the city of Tal Afar has been "completely liberated" after a two-week operation, and that ISIS militants no longer control any part of the city. According to the Associated Press, al-Abadi stated that Iraqi forces have managed to "crush and destroy ISIS terrorists" in the al-Ayadiya area, located 10 kilometers northwest of Tal Afar. He further declared, "We tell the ISIS criminals: wherever you are, we will reach you and liberate that place, and you must choose between death or surrender." Al-Abadi then announced that with the liberation of Tal Afar, the entire Nineveh province is now "in the hands of the brave Iraqi forces." Nineveh was the first area captured by ISIS in Iraq, and the city of Mosul, which is the capital of this province and the second most populous city in Iraq, was declared the center of the Islamic caliphate. Iraqi forces completely liberated Mosul in mid-July, and on August 15, they began operations in Tal Afar by bombing ISIS positions in the city. This operation was supported by U.S. forces, and the Iraqi army was able to reclaim more than 90% of the city within six days. Tal Afar is located 150 kilometers from the Iraq-Syria border and was one of the last cities in Iraq held by ISIS. Currently, ISIS controls the cities of Hawija, al-Qaim, Rawah, and Anah near the Syrian border. In this context, Iraqi forces have begun house-to-house combat in al-Ayadiya against ISIS.