Daesh ‘militarily’ finished in Iraq: PM

By Haydar Hadi

BAGHDAD (AA) – Daesh's presence in Iraq is “militarily” finished and all cities have been retaken, the Iraqi prime minister said on Tuesday.

Speaking at a weekly news briefing in Baghdad, Haider al-Abadi said the Daesh presence in a desert area in the west of the city of Anbar would come to an end soon.

“Then, it will be a full victory,” al-Abadi said adding that this day would be declared as “a national day” in Iraq.

Regarding the Iraqi Supreme Federal Court’s decision on Monday declaring a September referendum on the secession of northern Iraq’s Kurdish region “unconstitutional”, al-Abadi warned Kurdish citizens to avoid conflict.

“I warn our Kurdish citizens to avoid all kinds of conflicts and call on them to obey the laws,” Al-Abadi sai, stressing the need for security and adding that the Iraqi central government would pay the salaries of civil servants after necessary investigations.

Daesh has recently suffered a string of crushing defeats in both Iraq and Syria after overrunning vast swathes of territory in both countries in mid-2014.

On Nov. 17, Interior Minister Qasim al-Araji declared that Daesh terrorist group’s presence in Iraq has effectively come to an end following the “liberation” of the city of Rawa in the western Anbar province.