On Sunday, the Iraqi Army “Tigris Operation Room” held a meeting to discuss plans for the upcoming operation to liberate al-Hawijah area southwest of Kirkuk city from ISIS.
The Iraqi Army’s chief of the General Staff Colonel, General Othman al-Ghanimy, and the deputy commander of the Joint Operation Room, Colonel General Abd al-Amir Yarllah, attended the meeting, according to Iraqi sources.
42,000 Iraqi soldiers will reportedly patricide in the operation. The sources added that 8,000 vehicles, 650 armored vehicles and 200 battle tanks of the Iraqi Army will engage in the upcoming battle in al-Hawijah.
The operation aims to liberate 4,081 square kilometers between Kirkuk, Biji and al-Sharqat cities. Furthermore, the Iraqi Army will work to evacuate more than 100,000 civilians who are now in the ISIS-held area in al-Hawijah.
Iraqi sources confirmed that Iraqi and US-led coalition warplanes will provide an air support for the Iraqi Amy during the operation. Moreover, the Marines artillery and the French Army artillery force will support the attack too.
It’s still unknown if the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) will participate in the upcoming operation. Also the exact role of the Kurdish Peshmerga force is still unknown.
