Despite complaints and threats from Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, Turkey still refuses to remove its troops from Ba’Shiqah, saying that Iraq does not have control over a third of its territory, and it should use its armed forces against the Islamic State militants instead of threatening Turkish troops. The premier said that Daesh from does not threaten Turkey inside Iraqi territory, so troops do not belong in northern Iraq. It is more likely that Turkey is interested in being strategically positioned against Kurdistan Workers Party (P.K.K.) guerillas, who actually do threaten Turkey from base camps in northern Iraq.
Officials estimate that 3,000 homes in Ramadi have been completely demolished, with even more homes in various states of disrepair. It is too early for residents to attempt to return due to continued militant activity and booby-traps. Infrastructure, such as electrical lines and water mains, is also mostly destroyed.
UNICEF expressed concern for an entire generation of Iraq’s children who are losing out on education and proper healthcare due to the ongoing hostilities.
At least 134 were killed and 56 were wounded:
Forty civilians were executed in the Ramadi suburb of al-Sharka, after militants lured them out of hiding by wearing Iraqi Army uniforms.
In Madaen, a bomb killed two people and wounded six more.
Civilians were reported fighting Daesh in Falluja, after the militants forbade them from leaving the city.
Clashes were reported between security personnel and militants in Husayba al-Sharkiya and Jweba.
An airstrike killed 47 militants in Hit.
An airstrike on Sommur in Nineveh province killed 25 militants and wounded 50 more who were participating in a sharia court.
Twelve militants were killed in Muthanna.
In Hamdaniya, eight militants were killed.
