Hashdi Shaabi, the Shiite terror organization, has reportedly captured Tal Afer Airport which is the third important airport in Iraq, with the support of PKK terrorists from Sinjar base.
According to local sources, Hashdi Shaabi has slightly stepped into action to take control of Rabia and the outskirts of Sinjar Mountain, both known as the gate to Raqqa. The terror organization will therefore postpone capturing the town center for one week and divert its forces to seize 3 strategic spots on the way to Raqqa. For that reason, while approximately 1,200 Hashdi Shaabi terrorists were mobilized and departed from Tal Afer, they have also begun to strategically give military logistic support to PYD.
To forge a Shiite axis in Tal Afer's surroundings, Hashdi Shaabi groups have mobilized nearly 4,300 armed militants, while the Baghdad government, by capturing Tal Afer Airport, has gained the first logistic channel which would enable them to carry out the Mosul and Tal Afer operations without receiving support from the Kurdish regional government in the north.
''Shiite forces have closed the route between Mosul and Tal Afer by taking control of Tal Afer Military Airport,'' Yosuf Kelabi, a spokesperson for Hashdi Shaabi, said to Yeni Şafak. He added, ''We have moved our forces 27 km towards Tal Afer Airport and they sieged the airport from three different points and captured it. Tal Afer Airport has a strategically critical importance.''
As Hashdi Shaabi militants' activities have accelerated, Ankara has begun taking some steps for possible operations in case its Bashiqa base is targeted suddenly by those terrorist groups.
Meanwhile, Brett McGurk, a special presidential envoy for the global coalition to counter Daesh said:
''We have retaken 56 percent of lands, once controlled by Daesh. We are so glad to see that Daesh's existence in northern Syria has come to an end, thanks to Turkey.''
In his remarks on the future of Mosul and people of Mosul, Usame Nuceyfi, vice president of Iraq said most people in Mosul want to see a federal region where Mosul is capital and which includes Sinjar and Tal Afer.
Baghdad once assured that Hashdi Shaabi and the PKK will not enter Mosul, but in the end it did not keep the promise, Nuceyfi added.
He also stated, ''We want Ninevah's border to be like it was in 2003. People should decide their future with a referendum.''
