WASHINGTON DC – The Pentagon on Tuesday expressed displeasure at the codename chosen by Iraqi Shiite militias for the military campaign to retake the Sunni heartland city of Ramadi and Anbar province on Tuesday.
Hadi Amiri, commander of the Iranian-backed Popular Mobilization Force (PMF), declared the campaign in Anbar under the name “Labayk Ya Hussein,” a reference to an important Shiite saint that is likely to stir up sensitivities among Sunnis fighting alongside.
“I think it’s unhelpful,” said Pentagon Spokesman Colonel Steve Warren in his daily media briefing, about the operation’s codename. He added that victory cannot be achieved unless Iraq “separates itself from sectarian divides” and “coalesces around this common threat.”
The Ramadi campaign began Tuesday amid a blame game among Iraq, Iran and the United States. Over the weekend, US Defense Secretary Ash Carter blamed the Iraqi forces’ “lack of will to fight” against the Islamic State (ISIS) for the fall of Ramadi last week.
Iraqi officials claim that the US-led coalition did not use enough air power to stop the jihadists, while Iran accused Washington of orchestrating what happened in Ramadi, capital of Iraq’s largest Anbar province.
The Pentagon spokesman agreed that Iraqi forces largely outnumber ISIS, but “yet they chose to withdraw.”
“Their morale had slipped, their leadership was not up to par. They believed that they were not receiving the support that they thought they needed,” he said.
Meanwhile the US State Department, which has been reiterating President Barack Obama’s commitment to assisting the Iraqi government, refused to comment on the codename.
In his daily briefing, State Department's director of press Jeff Rathke avoided questions by journalists in the issue. He insisted that the Iraqi army and PMF, including Sunnis, are taking part in the military operations to retake control of Ramadi.
“It’s our understanding that the Iraqi security forces, along with a mix of the so-called Popular Mobilization Forces, including Sunni fighters, have begun to consolidate and reorganize and counter attack against ISIL around Ramadi,” he said, referring to ISIS by its other name.
“Again, we are encouraged by the Iraqi forces mobilizing at the order of Prime Minister (Haidar) Abadi, and we will continue to support all efforts by Iraqi forces under the command and control of the Iraqi government,” said Rathke.
He admitted that “the fall of Ramadi was a failure,” citing a number of reasons for its fall.
“There were breakdowns in military command, planning and reinforcement. Clearly, our strategy of supporting the Iraqi government requires a well-equipped and well-trained partner on the ground, and we’re helping to provide that support because we share the interest in Iraqi forces winning this fight,” he said.
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