TURKEY TAKES OFF GLOVES IN BATTLE AGAINST ISIS
After a bloody terrorist attack on Turkish soil, Turkey has begun conducting air and artillery strikes against ISIS targets in Iraq and Syria and has given permission to the U.S. to launch armed air operations from Incirlik, an important airbase in southern Turkey. At home Turkish authorities launched a security sweep across the country in which nearly 300 suspected ISIS-aligned terrorists, as well as “leftists and members of the Kurdish separatist group the Kurdistan Workers party (PKK),” were detained. Some Western experts note that Turkey has thus far targeted mostly PKK militants and is more concerned with degrading its longtime foe than attacking ISIS. According to officials, Turkey and the U.S. have agreed on the general terms of a plan to oust ISIS militants from a 60-mile-long strip in northern Syria, creating an “ISIS-free zone” controlled by moderate Syrian insurgents that would allow for some displaced Syrians to return home. While details of the arrangement have not yet been finalized, American officials have stated that a formal no-fly zone is not part of the agreement; the New York Times reported. American officials stressed that the depth of the buffer zone had yet to be established. (Financial Times July 24, 2015; New York Times, July 27, 2015)
IRAQI FORCES ATTACK ISLAMIC STATE BASE IN RAMADI
According to U.S. officials “Iraqi forces have launched an attack against the Islamic State-controlled University of Anbar complex in the city of Ramadi.” Other sources suggest Iraqi forces had already taken control of the complex. The fight for control over the university is the latest event in the Iraqi military’s operation to expel ISIS from Anbar province, in a new offensive launched in early July. Sabah al-Noamani, a spokesman for Iraq’s counter-terrorism forces, called the university a “‘significant stronghold and a key command base’ used by IS to co-ordinate attacks around Ramadi.” (BBC July 26, 2015)
IRAN ACCUSES BAHRAIN OF STOKING GULF TENSIONS
Iran accused Bahrain of exacerbating tensions in the Gulf by making “unfounded allegations” against it, a day after Bahrain’s interior ministry said that it had detained two men accused of attempting to smuggle weapons from Iran. The official IRNA news agency quoted foreign ministry spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham: "‘It is clear that the government of Bahrain, by repeating unfounded allegations, seeks to create a climate of tension in the region…Such methods are not constructive, and do not diminish the Islamic republic's commitment to continue its policy... and regional cooperation in the fight against terrorism and extremism.’” Last week, supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stated that the recent nuclear deal with the U.S. did not change its support for the governments of Syria and Iraq nor its support for the “oppressed people” in Yemen and Bahrain. (Agence France-Presse July 26, 2015)
FIGHTING CONTINUES IN YEMEN AS CEASEFIRE QUICKLY UNRAVELS
Despite a ceasefire announcement by a Saudi-led coalition conducting airstrikes in Yemen, Houthi rebels continued fighting in late July. While the capital Sana’a was largely spared, fighting continued across much of the country. According to Reuters, “Aden residents said Houthi forces had fired missiles at Mansoura and Sheikh Othman districts from shortly after midnight until after dawn.” The Saudi state news organization Ekhbariya reported that the Houthis had also carried out attacks in the central province of Marib and city of Taiz. United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urged all parties to “suspend military operations during the pause and refrain from exploiting it to move weapons or seize territory." (Reuters July 27, 2015)
KYRGYZ LEADER SAYS U.S. ‘SOUGHT CHAOS’ BY DECORATING DISSIDENT
Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev has accused the U.S. of seeking to “create chaos” in his country by bequeathing an award to jailed dissident and ethnic Uzbek, Azimjon Askarov. “‘This (U.S. award) cannot fail to shock and, for Kyrgyzstan, this means ethnic instability and an attempt to create chaos…It’s just revolting. Someone needs instability in Kyrgyzstan. Someone wants these ashes to shoulder all the time.’” Atambayev said. Askarov was convicted of organizing mass disturbances and inciting ethnic hatred in the June 2010 inter-ethnic clashes in southern Kyrgyzstan that left over 400 people dead. Recently, Kyrgyzstan has been drawing closer to Russia, which maintains a military air base in the country and hosts thousands of Kyrgyz migrant workers; Atambayev defended two bills moving through parliament, which critics say are meant to imitate laws passed in Russia—one outlawing “gay propaganda,” the other requiring charities receiving funding from abroad to register as “foreign agents.” (The Star Online July 27, 2015)