Iraqi forces push north into IS-held Hawija
Despite a lack of close coordination with Peshmerga, federal security forces started an offensive to retake the IS group's last major stronghold in northern Iraq.A member of the Iraqi security forces holds his weapon during a raid and weapons search operation in Hawija on April 24, 2014. (YAHYA AHMAD/Reuters)
Iraqi security forces launched an offensive Thursday to expel the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) from Hawija – one of the militant group's last strongholds in Iraq, from which it has been able to attack oil infrastructure and steal crude from nearby oil wells.
The much-anticipated assault begins on the heels of an ongoing operation to recapture the other remaining IS bastion in Iraq, in the western part of Anbar province.
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