During the past few hours there has been an escalation of
the security situation in Anbar, particularly in the province's western areas:
Haditha is still blockaded on all sides by gunmen who are trying to penetrate
into the town. This morning there were fierce clashes between these armed
groups and the security, tribal, and 'Awakenings' forces within the town.
Overall, 16 personnel have been killed in the fighting, among them 5 gunmen.
Overall, at least 23 have been wounded. The areas on the town's periphery also
came under aerial bombardment, particularly to the west towards Ana township
In Fallujah, at least 11 residents have been killed and at
least 17 wounded, mostly women and children, according to a Fallujah General Hospital
In Al-Garma, 5 residents have been killed today and 7 were
wounded by the bombardment during the past 24 hours.
The leader of the Anbar Provincial Council, Sabah Karhout, declared today both Ramadi and Fallujah as being disaster areas as a
result of the military operations in and on them; he called on civil and
international organizations to intervene by providing relief aid to the two
cities where living conditions are very harsh, given that local residents and
the gunmen are both present within the cities' districts, and this exposes the
residents to the bombardments.
There have been some conversations regarding the formation
of tribal military units to fight the armed extremist groups and to support the
local police forces. Meanwhile, the northern sector of Ramadi is still
witnessing ongoing clashes and bombardment.
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