Iraqi army gradually regains control of Tikrit city

(Baonghean.vn) - On Tuesday, March 10, the Iraqi army and Shiite militias regained control of Al-Alam center, in the northern suburbs of Tikrit city. This is the achievement of the Iraqi government after a week of fighting to retake Tikrit city from IS.

Iraqi troops are gradually approaching and retaking the city of Tikrit. Photo: Reuters/Thaier Al-Sunani

Currently, according to Iraqi officers, IS jihadists are still hiding in buildings in the northern area of ​​Tikrit. However, government forces said they are also ready for a hand-to-hand battle to drive IS out of the city.

It is known that after recapturing the Al-Dour area located south of Tikrit city last week, Al-Alam is the last strategic location that the government army regained before launching an attack on the hometown of former dictator Saddam Hussein.

Since Tikrit fell to IS in the summer of 2014, the government has repeatedly tried to retake the city. According to analysts, Tikrit is a strategic location on the road to Mosul, another city in northern Iraq that is also under IS control. And if the government recaptures Tikrit, the battle to retake Mosul will be easier.

However, contrary to the good news from Tikrit, the war situation in Kirkuk is not very optimistic. IS jihadists are still holding on tightly in Kirkuk city despite the surprise attacks by Kurdish forces last Monday.

At this point, it seems that the recapture of Kirkuk from IS is still quite far away as the Kurds have not yet been able to reach the outskirts of the city. According to military sources, the battles to retake Kirkuk are currently 20 km away from the city.

Chu Thanh– according to LeMonde March 10