Obeidi announces controlling northern axis of Ramadi
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(IraqiNews.com) Baghdad – On Saturday, Defense Minister Khaled al-Obeidi announced the addition of senior officers of al-Hashed al-Sha’bi to train and rehabilitate its elements, while pointed out that the army had gained control over the northern axis of Ramadi.
Al-Obeidi said in a press conference followed by IraqiNews.com, “Senior officers were added to the al-Hashed al-Sha’bi to train and rehabilitate its elements,” adding that, “The army took over the northern axis of Ramadi, but unfortunately the media coverage was not at the required level.”
He explained, “Because of the deficiency in ground forces, we started to use al-Hashed al-Sha’bi,” pointing out that, “Training camps and sites were provided to the al-Hashed al-Sha’bi”.
The minister stated, “The army has made great achievements and will never vanish,” noting that, “The army will be liberating all Iraqi lands by next year.”
In regards to the Department of Defense contracts, Obeidi mentioned that, “There are a lot of contracts that are not currently needed,” pointing out that, “$3 Billion worth contracts were canceled and replaced with other contracts.”
As for the budget of the Department of Defense, Obeidi said, “The ministry’s budget is $600,000, while it has used to be millions of dollars in the past years.”
Noteworthy, Iraq is witnessing an extraordinary security situation, as military operations continue to expel ISIS from the areas under its control, while the international coalition conduct air strikes targeting ISIS sites in those areas resulting in casualties in its ranks.