Iraq starts operation to rid Ramadi of Islamic State

Kim Hjelmgaard | Special for USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Iraq renews effort against Islamic State Iraq announced Tuesday it is renewing efforts to drive the Islamic State from western Anbar province. Without providing details, authorities said a new operation was being launched with Iraq troops supported by Shiite and Sunni forces.

BAGHDAD — A Shiite militia group said Tuesday it has arrested hundreds of Islamic State militants in embattled Anbar province as Iraq announced a major military operation to regain control of the region.

Iraqi state TV reported the government operation is backed by Shiite militias and Sunni forces, but the broadcaster did not provide details. The Islamic State, also known as ISIL or ISIS, captured Anbar's provincial capital Ramadi last week, marking a major setback for Iraqi forces.

"We announce the beginning of the military operation to liberate Anbar," said Ahmad al-Assadi, a spokesman for Iraq's Shiite militias called the Popular Mobilization Forces. "This operation will end the hit-and-run operations by (Islamic State) militants. The next coming days will witness an intensifying of the siege on Ramadi."

The U.S.-led coalition in Iraq confirmed Tuesday that Iraqi security forces are engaged in an operation to retake Ramadi. The coalition is providing air support as requested by Iraq's government, according to the joint task force commanding coalition forces.

The coalition command has said between 2,000 and 3,000 Iraqi army forces are near the city, primarily in blocking positions east and west of Ramadi.

Some 4,000 Sunni tribal fighters are participating in the fight in Anbar province, al-Assadi said Tuesday. Ramadi is surrounded from three sides by Iraqi forces, he said. The Pentagon, however, could not confirm that detail, said Col. Steve Warren, a spokesman, according to The Associated Press.

One Shiite militia group, Kateab Hezbollah, said in a statement: "We have arrested hundreds of (Islamic State) militants, including foreigners in Anbar. We have carried out an operation at the outskirts of Ramadi in coordination with Iraqi troops."

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said Tuesday "the liberation of Anbar is so close." He added the forces include police, army and militia groups. Al-Abadi said thousands of troops were sent to the south of Ramadi, and two areas there fell to government forces.

The newly appointed police chief of Anbar province, Gen. Hadi Arrzaij, said the local police forces that withdrew earlier from Ramadi have been reorganized to push them again into the city.

The Anbar operation aims at cutting off supply routes and recapturing the outskirts of Ramadi first — not the city itself, according to provincial councilman Faleh al-Issawi and tribesman Rafie al-Fahdawi. The two told the AP there was ongoing fighting and airstrikes west and south of Ramadi on Tuesday, adding more Sunni fighters will be armed starting Wednesday to join the battle.

Al-Assadi told the AP that Iraqi forces were using new weapons "that will surprise the enemy."

The use of Iranian-backed Shiite militias to back the government's counteroffensive has sparked concerns of potential sectarian violence in the Sunni province.

Adding to the tension, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter told CNN on Sunday that Iraqi forces "vastly outnumbered" the Islamic State, but "showed no will to fight" when Ramadi was taken by the militants.

Iraq and Iran pushed back against that assessment Monday, with an Iranian general going so far as saying America had "no will" to fight the extremists.

Gen. Qassim Soleimani, head of Iran's elite Quds forces in Iran's Revolutionary Guard, told Iranian newspaper Javan that the U.S. didn't do a "damn thing" to stop the advance on Ramadi. Saad al-Hadithi, a spokesman for Iraq's prime minister, said Carter had "incorrect information."

Contributing: Jim Michaels in Washington and Kim Hjelmgaard in London.