18 October 2014

In Ramadi, gunmen have attacked a number of the city's districts; fierce clashes broke out in the areas that were controlled by security forces, with the gunmen trying to re-take those districts. The Anbar Operations Command and the Police Command announced today that they have taken control of the rural area across the Euphrates. However, the surrounding areas are still under the gunmen's control.

Hit has also been the scene of intermittent clashes in the town's southwestern sector, when gunmen tried to move into the areas along the Euphrates  that are still controlled by tribal forces.

In Baghdadi, the armed groups are still surrounding the township that is home to the Ayn Al-Asad Military Base. The head of the township's municipality has again warned of an impending humanitarian disaster in the next few days, as a result of the gunmen's blockade on all food and fuel supplies. Making matters worse is the presence in the township of more than 4,000 displaced families.

In Fallujah, some of the city's residential districts have been under bombardment. The General Hospital has announced that 4 residents have been killed and 7 wounded.

In Garma, there have been clashes and mortar fire in some of the town's districts, particularly in those adjacent to northern Fallujah.   

The appointment of an Anbar Police Commander is still awaiting the Interior Ministry's decision to appoint Gen. Kadhum Al-Fahdawi, a military man with the former regime. He has stipulated that his appointment would be contingent upon the arrival of military equipment and munitions to the security forces in Anbar, particularly the Police.

The head of the Anbar Council, Sabah Karhoot, has warned against the infiltration of gunmen into Iraq from across the Syrian border. He called on coalition forces to secure the border areas between the two countries.