Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi formally declared an end to the three-year-long war against the Islamic State militants, after regaining control of the Syrian and Iraqi border.
With the war over, Qais Khazali, the leader of the Asaib Ahl al-Haq militia, has appeared on the Lebanese frontier, possibly seeking a new conflict to participate in. Also, a spokesman for the Saraya al-Salam militia, led by Shi’ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, announced that a new brigade is forming in response to the United States formally recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
At least 51 people were killed, and 28 more were wounded:
A clash on Friday in Awaser left 10 militiamen dead and four wounded. Four militants were also killed.
Missiles fell on Turkmen homes in Tuz Khormato, killing a child and wounding 13 others. A mortar attack wounded two militiamen. Militia retaliated against targets in the Hanjira Mountains.
Near Tuz Khormato, Kurdish residents of Balkana village took up arms against Shi’ite militiamen, killing two of them.
In Hit, a bombing killed four people.
One person was killed and four were wounded by an explosion in Tarmiya.
A bomb killed one civilian and wounded two more in Tikrit.
In Baghdad, a bomb killed a civilian in the Jihad district.
Gunmen killed a government worker in Mosul.
Three civilians were wounded in a bombing in Hesniya.
A blast in Madaen left three wounded.
Along the Syrian border, airstrikes left 16 militants dead.
Ten militants were killed after militiamen found them in a tunnel near Kirkuk.
