ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - ISIS militants have fortified their frontlines in Hawija town to stop any advance from the Peshemrga and Iraqi forces following the expected liberation of Tikrit. The Peshmerga and the Shia militias known as the People’s Mobilization Forces (PMF) have been stationed around ISIS-held Hawija, in Krikuk province, to prevent militants in the town from reinforcing those battling Iraqi joint forces in Tikrit. Now, ISIS militants are reportedly reinforcing their positions in the event of an assault on the town should Tikrit fall. Hawija is 117km north of Tikrit, in Sunni-majority Salahaddin province, and 30km south of Kirkuk. Some Sunni tribes, such as local Abed tribes, have expressed willingness to fight ISIS along with the Peshmerga and PMF in liberating Hawija. The head of the security committee of the Saladin provincial council told Rudaw on Saturday he expected Tikrit to fall within “hours.”
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