This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/13/world/middleeast/iraqi-forces-battle-sunni-rebels-over-control-of-a-military-base.html

The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 1 Version 2
Iraqi Forces Battle Sunni Rebels Over Control of a Military Base Iraqi Militants Kill 26 in Raid on Baghdad Building
(about 4 hours later)
BAGHDAD — The fighting for small patches of territory continued in Iraq on Saturday as security forces battled for hours to regain control from Sunni extremists over a military base in an area northeast of Baghdad. BAGHDAD — Gunmen stormed an apartment complex in Baghdad on Saturday night and killed at least 20 women and six men, according to the Interior Ministry.
This battle was at a military base in Muqdadiya in the center of Diyala Province, and it appeared that after six or eight hours of fighting, the army had won it back from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS, the Sunni militant group that has swept through large areas of northern and western Iraq in recent months. It remained unclear if the militants might be regrouping to try to grab the base back. The apartment complex is known for prostitution and in the past prostitutes have been the targets of extrajudicial killings there by Muslim extremists. It was not clear if that was what happened this time. However, if the targets were prostitutes, it is unlikely that would cause the kind of backlash that a large-scale sectarian killing would.
Seventeen militants and six members of the security forces were killed, according to a doctor at the provincial hospital, which received the bodies. Still the attack, and the fact that at least initially the perpetrators seemed to vanish without a trace, raised the specter that amid the chaos sweeping the country, gunmen feel they can act with complete impunity even in the capital. Almost at the same time, a television station associated with Sunnis broadcast what it said was a recording by Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, a fugitive who was Saddam Hussein’s vice president and a senior figure in the Baath Party.
“There are no civilians in the area,” said a man who lives near the area and could hear the fighting. He asked not to be quoted by name because he was fearful that one side or the other would find out. Intelligence experts here have predicted an unleashing of anti-government cells and some wondered on Saturday if Mr. Douri’s message was the signal for the cells to begin to fight.
“It’s a war zone, only ISIS and the army are there, and the army is not really an army,” he said, explaining that many of those participating in the fight are Shiite militia members. “The liberation of Baghdad has become close or closer,” the man reported to be Mr. Douri said in a statement full of support for the insurgency that has swept through large parts of northern and western Iraq. “Half of Iraq’s land is outside of the government’s control.”
Other local residents said they, too, believed that militias were heavily involved in the fighting now in Diyala. This fight, residents said, included members of both Asaib al-Haq and the Peace Brigades, a new group of volunteer fighters started by the Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sadr. The statement was also notable because it appeared to run counter to reports that the insurgency could be weakened by friction between the main insurgent group and Mr. Douri’s group of former loyalists to Saddam Hussein.
South of Baghdad in Babil Province, the southern front of the fighting against Sunni extremists remained difficult for the Iraqi military. After four police officers were killed, the army went in to retrieve the bodies, but were ambushed by ISIS fighters who killed four of them, according to the operations command in Hilla, the capital of Babil Province. Mr. Douri is the founder of the Men of the Army of the Naqshbandia Order, a group of former Baathists that has taken an active part in the recent battles against the Iraqi government. The broadcast heaped praise on the main Sunni insurgent group, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS.
Also on Saturday, officials raised the death toll from Friday’s suicide bomb in Kirkuk from 13 to 28. “What happened in Nineveh and Tikrit is the greatest day ever in Iraqi and Arab history,” the man reported to be Mr. Douri said, referring to the ISIS takeovers, which were carried out with the help of a number of insurgent groups, including the Naqshbandia Order.
Despite the violence and tensions with the Kurds, who recently took over Kirkuk, all political parties said they would go to Parliament on Sunday to make another effort to form a government. The divide between the country’s ethnic and sectarian groups has deepened since an election in April, and so far they have been unable to bridge the gaps and form a government. He blessed all the groups, but above all “the heroes and knights of Al Qaeda and ISIS,” adding, “I send them warm greetings full of love.”
The United Nations envoy to Iraq, Nickolay E. Mladenov issued a statement saying that “failing to move forward on electing a new speaker, a new president, and a new government risks plunging the country into chaos.” The fighting for small patches of territory continued on Saturday. Security forces regained control of a military base that ISIS had taken over in an area northeast of Baghdad. It remained unclear if the militants might be regrouping to try to grab back the base.
Seventeen militants and six members of the security forces were killed in that fighting in Diyala Province, according to a doctor at the provincial hospital, which received the bodies.
“There are no civilians in the area,” said a man who lives near the area and could hear the fighting, but asked not to be quoted by name because he feared one side or the other would find out.
“It’s a war zone, only ISIS and the army are there and the army is not really an army,” he said, explaining that many of those participating in the fight are Shiite militia members.
Other locals said they too believed that militias were now heavily involved in the fighting in Diyala. This fight, locals said, included members of the Asaib al—Haq militia and the Peace Brigades, a new group of volunteer fighters started by the radical Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sadr.
South of Baghdad, in Babil Province, the southern front of the fighting against Sunni extremists remained difficult for the Iraqi military. After four police officers were killed, the army went in to retrieve the bodies and was ambushed by ISIS fighters who killed four of them, according to the operations command in Hilla, the provincial capital.
In developments elsewhere in the country, officials raised the death toll from Friday’s suicide bombing in Kirkuk to 28 from 13.
As the military showdowns continued, the country’s political parties were still attempting to form a new government after elections in April, with the parties saying they would go to the Parliament on Sunday to make another effort. The divide between the country’s ethnic and sectarian groups has deepened since the elections, and so far the parties have been unable to bridge the gaps.
It seemed unlikely that the parties would be able to quickly smooth over their differences. In an interview on Saturday Dafar al-Ani, the spokesman for the largest Sunni bloc, said that he thought the Sunnis needed two or three more days to agree on their nominee for the speakership.
Approving a speaker is the first step in forming a government, according to the Constitution. Then within two weeks, the Parliament must vote on a president and within a month of that, a prime minister.
The United Nations envoy to Iraq, Nickolay Mladenov issued a statement Saturday saying that “failing to move forward on electing a new speaker, a new president, and a new government risks plunging the country into chaos.”