Iraq Loses Key East Anbar Base to ISIS

As Losses Mount Near Hit, Last Base Near Haditha Surrounded

ISIS continues to make gains in Iraq’s western Anbar Province, with the military base outside of the city of Hit the latest to fall to an ISIS advance, and costing them one of the last such bases in the province.

Early reports of “heavy fighting” at the Hit base were replaced with reports that the Iraqi ground troops had abandoned the base, though it seems that as usual they were losing the fighting.

The next target for ISIS in the province seems to be the Ayn al-Asad base, on the outskirts of Haditha. This base is said to be surrounded as well, with the fall of that base giving ISIS a straight shot at the important Haditha Dam.

Anbar officials say that they believe ISIS currently controls about 80% of the province, which is Iraq’s largest. The rest of the territory, however, is not under the Iraqi government’s control, by and large, and is just contested.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.