Iraqi offensive against Isis at Tal Afar, fears for the fate of thousands of civilians

Government soldiers have already taken control of some villages in the area. The city rises along the road connecting Mosul to the Syrian border and is strategically important for the passage of men and goods. Inside there would be up to 50,000 people trapped. Pentagon chief on surprise visit to Iraq, meetings with the premier and Kurdish president scheduled.

Baghdad (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The offensive by Iraqi forces against the Islamic State (IS, former Isis) in Tal Afar, the northern part of the country, the last bastion still in the hands of jihadist militants has entered its third day. Government Army soldiers have already taken over control of some villages on the outskirts of the city, which is located along the route leading from Mosul to the Syrian border.

The attack began at dawn on August 20th and comes a few weeks after the recapture of Mosul, for years considered the "capital" of the Islamic caliphate in Iraq. Tal Afar's fall would be a further, fierce blow to the Islamic militia, which until a few months ago controlled much of northern Iraq and the eastern sector of Syria.

The protagonists of the offensive against the Jihadist battalion are the Iraqi army, federal police, anti-terrorist forces, and about 20,000 fighters of Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary militants (Shiite, supported by Iran). The attack is conducted on three different fronts: Western, Southern and Southeastern. The goal is to wrest entire control of the area, in the hands of jihadists since 2014.

Over the past few weeks, the air force has launched a series of air raids to weaken the IS defenses and thus prepare the ground for the military offensive that in the coming days should also target Hawijah a nearby town. The army has dropped leaflets pointing out that "liberating your city is the armed forces’ next goal."

As with Mosul, fears of the Tal Afar battle concern the fate of thousands of civilians trapped in the city and unable to escape. Coalition estimates say that there are between 10,000 to 50,000 people in the world still blocked. Lisa Grande, UN Special Representative in Iraq for Humanitarian Affairs, reports that "over 30,000 people have already left" the Tal Afar region, where up to 200,000 people lived before the arrival of ISIS, and thousands would be ready to flee in the coming days. "Some families are willing to walk from 10 to 20 hours, in extreme heat - he adds - to reach the collection points. They arrive exhausted and dehydrated. "

Tal Afar's offensive shows, once again, the military weakness of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, where it continues to lose ground and more and more areas once under their control. Analysts and experts point out that the attacks in Europe and other areas of the West, since the last attack on Barcelona in the wars of the past, are a jihadist response to internal defeats. A change in strategy that, while putting the dream of a Caliphate on hold, is about striking at the heart of the EU.

This morning, meanwhile, US Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis landed in Baghdad for a surprise visit. The Pentagon chief will meet with Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and other senior government officials, as well as the president of the Kurdish autonomous region Massoud Barzani in Erbil. "The Islamic state - Mattis said - has counted days, this is certain" even if "it has not disappeared altogether" and its end will not come soon.