- Title: Coalition failed to provide air support in Iraq battle - Peshmerga
- Date: 23rd October 2016
- Summary: NEAR BATNAYA, IRAQ (OCTOBER 20, 2016) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF PESHMERGA MILITARY VEHICLES ADVANCING ON MOSUL NEAR BATNAYA, IRAQ (OCTOBER 21, 2016) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) COMMANDER OF PESHMERGA SPECIAL FORCES, MANSOUR BARZANI, SAYING: "Yesterday, 6 o'clock in the morning, we had a plan to control some area from the terrorist ISIS hand and thank God we could start at 6 o'clock in the morning and until noon time we could control some of this area, but I have to say unfortunately, because we haven't any support of the air force, and I have no idea why yesterday it was like this, and that's why we couldn't control all this area what we had in our plan." BARZANI TALKING WITH TROOPS BEHIND HIM (SOUNDBITE) (English) COMMANDER OF PESHMERGA SPECIAL FORCES, MANSOUR BARZANI, SAYING: "Really I have no idea. It was a technical problem or whatever because we called the operation room many times and we asked about the car bombs that came to us, the Peshmerga, and they said 'We're gonna help you, we're gonna help you'. And a lot of the places the mortar came to the base of the Peshmerga, but unfortunately until night time, we haven't any support, but after the weather come dark, we had a lot of support from the aircraft." BARZANI STANDING WITH TROOPS (SOUNDBITE) (English) COMMANDER OF PESHMERGA SPECIAL FORCES, MANSOUR BARZANI, SAYING: "I believe that in the next few days we will finish it." BARZANI TALKING ON WALKIE-TALKIE (SOUNDBITE) (English) COMMANDER OF PESHMERGA SPECIAL FORCES, MANSOUR BARZANI, SAYING: "They have to because our enemy is the same enemy and thankful for them until now they support us a lot, but only yesterday, I don't know at all, they didn't support us even with single bomb." BARZANI TALKING TO TROOPS (SOUNDBITE) (English) COMMANDER OF PESHMERGA SPECIAL FORCES, MANSOUR BARZANI, SAYING: "Yesterday I can say all we lost is two Peshmerga and seven injured. It was the operation room's fault because we haven't any support from them, unfortunately. I don't know why. I don't know why they help us, they support us nighttime but the daytime when the car bomb came to us, they didn't help us." BARZANI TALKING ON WALKIE-TALKIE (SOUNDBITE) (English) COMMANDER OF PESHMERGA SPECIAL FORCES, MANSOUR BARZANI, SAYING: "Everybody they know, Peshmerga, we don't have really enough weapons to fight with this kind of terrorist in the war because the terrorists ISIS they got a lot of weapons from the Iraqi army, and all these weapons from the Iraqi army, the United States they give to Iraqi army. But unfortunately all these weapons the terrorist ISIS took it." BARZANI CLIMBING HILL (SOUNDBITE) (English) COMMANDER OF PESHMERGA SPECIAL FORCES, MANSOUR BARZANI, SAYING: "We did this because they had meetings between Kurdish leader, President Barzani and Mr Prime Minister of Iraq, and a lot of people from the United States and general of U.S. army, and they told us you have to do this one. And we did it because they told us. Otherwise we haven't any problem with our old frontline and that's why we have to wait until we'll see the Iraqi army, really they are serious, or it's another behind the wall, because I'm not a politic man, I don't know anything about the politicians. I'm one soldier of this country and I got order from Mr. President to do this operation." BARZANI WALKING AND GETTING INTO HUMMER VIEW OF MILITARY VEHICLES FROM INSIDE HUMMER PESHMERGA FIGHTER LOOKING THROUGH PERISCOPE NEAR BATNAYA, IRAQ (OCTOBER 20, 2016) (REUTERS) VIEW OF WAR SCENE WITH PESHMERGA MILITARY VEHICLES IN DESERT PEOPLE SURRENDERING WITH WHITE FLAGS PLUMES OF SMOKE RISING FROM TOWN OF BATNAYA PESHMERGA SOLDIERS, SOLDIER APPROACHING CAMERA SAYING (Kurdish): 'BIJI PESHMERGA' (LONG LIVE PESHMERGA) PESHMERGA UNLOCKING MILITARY VEHICLE DOOR PESHMERGA UNPACKING WEAPONS PESHMERGA MILITARY VEHICLES ADVANCING ON MOSUL AT SUNSET
- Embargoed: 7th November 2016 15:34
- Keywords: Iraq Barzani Peshmerga U.S. Batnaya
- Location: NEAR BATNAYA, IRAQ
- City: NEAR BATNAYA, IRAQ
- Country: Iraq
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Military Conflicts
- Reuters ID: LVA0015584MRR
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The commander of Kurdish Peshmerga Special Forces said on Friday (October 21) that his troops had not been given the promised air support by coalition forces as they advanced on Mosul.
Mansour Barzani, son of the Kurdish regional President Massoud Barzani, said the lack of help meant his troops hadn't been able to make as much progress as they had intended.
"Because we haven't any support of the air force, and I have no idea why yesterday it was like this, and that's why we couldn't control all this area what we had in our plan," he said.
Barzani made the comments close to the Christian town of Batnaya, from where IS was launching mortar attacks against his troops.
He said that despite numerous calls to the operations room, and assurances that help was coming, not a "single bomb" was dropped by coalition forces.
It was only when the sun went down, he said, that the coalition launched air strikes on Batnaya.
"After the weather come dark, we had a lot of support from the aircraft," he said.
But Peshmerga forces lost at least two of their soldiers in the battle, he said, adding that they didn't have the weaponry to fight effectively against the well-armed Islamic State.
"The terrorists ISIS they got a lot of weapons from the Iraqi army," he said.
Barzani said that in meetings between the Kurdish president, Iraq's Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, and the U.S, military, prior to the coordinated attack, it was agreed that the Peshmerga would advance ahead of the Iraqi army, with the promise of much needed air support.
"We did it because they told us. Otherwise we haven't any problem with our old frontline," he said, alluding to the fact that the advance would redraw the borders of the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG), widening its territory.
Around 6,000 Peshmerga Special Forces began a 30 km wide advance from north of Mosul at 6 a.m. (0300 GMT), clearing the way of mines, while taking heavy mortar fire from neighboring small villages under the control of Islamic State.
Despite being caught off-guard by the lack of air support, they said they had managed to recapture 75 percent of the territory they had planned. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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