Iraq’s prime minister warned Al Qaeda militants they would be flushed out of Fallujah as tribal chiefs reported army shelling in the south-western area of the city on Wednesday.
Nouri Al Maliki had earlier ordered the military to hold off its assault to allow residents and pro-government tribal fighters an opportunity to push out militants from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) who claimed control of areas of the city last week.
“The result will be clear and decisive: uprooting this corrupt organisation”, Mr Al Maliki said.
“We will continue this fight because we believe that Al Qaeda and its allies represent evil.”
Amid Wednesday’s chaos, there were conflicting accounts of the situation inside Fallujah.
The Red Crescent reported 13,000 families had fled the city and the United Nations warned of a humanitarian crisis in Anbar, a province that borders Syria.
But anti-government tribal leaders claimed that a semblance of normality returned to Fallujah with the formation of a new municipality and traffic police returning to the streets.
“Families started coming out of their houses and government offices have opened their doors again,” said Abd Al Rahman Al Zawbi, head of the anti-government tribal council of Fallujah.
“The army agreed to hold off its shelling in return that the tribal sheikhs would urge their youth to calm down.”
Anti-government tribal leaders said that the army launched an assault in the morning and, according to news reports, also shelled areas of the city.
“There was calm until about 10am,” said Sheikh Rafi Mushhin of the Al Jumaili tribe who lives in the village of Karma, a few kilometers on the outskirts of Fallujah.
He claimed that tribal fighters burnt four army humvees vehicles and stopped some troops from entering areas of the city under their control.
Mr Mushhin and Mr Al Zawbi both claim there is no Al Qaeda presence in Fallujah, which was once a bloody battleground for US troops.
The US said earlier this week it would fast-track deliveries of military hardware, including drones and missiles, to Iraq, but ruled out boots on the ground two years after Washington withdrew its troops from the country.
“This assault on the tribes of Fallujah is a political campaign, There is no Isil here. We are the revolting tribes,” Mr Al Zawbi said. “This was a situation in which the central government was reacting to the protests.”
Tensions have been simmering in Anbar since December 2012, when the Sunni community staged protests to denounce the Shiite-led government. Sunnis claim that they are second-class citizens in Iraq and accuse Mr Al Maliki’s government of exploiting de-Baathification laws, which were written to purge Saddam Hussein’s loyalists from state institutions.
The situation deteriorated in Anbar last month after the arrest of a Sunni legislator sought on terrorism charges, followed by the government’s dismantling of an anti-government Sunni protest camp in Ramadi.
The Anbar government believes Isil is operating in the province and several tribal groups have taken up arms against the militant Islamists.
A deal struck between tribes and the government on Tuesday had urged the army to remain on the outskirts of the city for fears of civilian casualties.
Access to food and basic services in Fallujah had halted over the last few days, according to Abu Hasan, a resident of Fallujah.
The Red Crescent said it has already provided humanitarian assistance to more than 8,000 families as the UN warned of a humanitarian disaster.
“The situation in Fallujah is particularly concerning, as existing stocks of food, water and life-saving medicines begin to run out,” said UN envoy to Iraq Nikolay Mladenov.
Munim Abdul-Salam, a Fallujah resident, said his family faced difficult conditions.
“I decided to return to Fallujah because I believe there will be a peaceful solution,” said Mr Abdul-Salam, a teacher with three sons and a daughter. “I spent three days with my family in a camp and it’s really humiliating. I prefer to be killed with my family inside Fallujah than live as a refugee.”
Feisal Istrabadi, director for the Centre of the Middle East at Indiana University, blamed Mr Al Maliki for the crisis.
“The unwillingness of the Maliki government to engage in political reconciliation has caused the population of Anbar — again — to turn its back on Baghdad. Without political bargains and genuine power-sharing, this problem will recur,” said Mr Istrabadi, who also served as deputy permanent representative of Iraq to the UN.
The Anbar government also criticised Mr Al Maliki’s government.
“There are militants, that include Isil, in Fallujah,” said Faleh Al Issawi, deputy head of the provincial council of Anbar, which is allied with Iraq’s central government.
“Isil is one issue, but the central government is another,” he said. “They treat us as second-class citizens.”
halsayegh@thenational.ae with additional reporting from Reuters and Associated Press
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