“The military operation had been temporarily slowed for two weeks as army forces, the Hashd al-Shaabi [Popular Mobilization Units] and local police reorganized in order to restart their attacks,” Mayor Mohamad Mahmud, told Rudaw Arabic on Sunday.
Baiji, located in Salahadin province roughly 210km from Baghdad, fell to ISIS in 2014. The city’s oil refinery is said to be the largest in Iraq and vital for the economy.
“A military operation is going on in Tal Jirad against Daesh elements, south of Baiji,” the mayor added, using the Arabic acronym for ISIS.
The government has claimed victory in Baiji several times in the past months, but the reports have been unfounded. ISIS suicide attacks have halted the advances of Iraqi forces, according to reports.
ISIS radicals attacked Hashd al-Shaabi forces in recent days, rigging 18 military vehicles with explosives, killing and wounding dozens of Iraqi forces.
Reports that the Shiite militias, known as Hashd al-Shaabi, had withdrawn from Baiji and Anbar last week have been denied by the group’s commanders.
Local media reported that Shiite militias’ alleged withdrawal from Iraq’s Anbar and Baiji was caused by the presence of US advisers in the area.
The pro-Iranian Shiite group, however, claimed that US forces have no role on the ground and that their forces will not withdraw from the battle.
