After fighting in a bloody three-day war, Al Qaeda-affiliated militants raised its flag over government building in the western city of Fallujah, the city previously secured by U.S. forces before withdrawing from the country two years later, The Washington Post reported.
At least eight people were killed and dozens injured Friday night as the Iraqi army tries to regain control of the city. The army, which lobbed mortar bombs in its response, has been joined in the fray by tribesmen from Ramadi, a Sunni stronghold.
Major Sunni tribes turned against Al Qaeda before the American withdrawal at the end of 2011, but also do not support the Shiite-led government in Iraq, creating an odd alliance in the battle against militants. The total death toll from the violence, which began earlier in the week, is not yet known.
FLASHBACK: Greg Palkot reports from Fallujah in 2004
On Friday, Al Qaeda gunman sought to win over the population in Fallujah with a militant commander appearing among worshippers holding Friday prayers in the main city street, proclaiming that his fighters were there to defend Sunnis from the government, a resident said.
"We are your brothers from the Islamic State in Iraq and Levant," militants shouted through the city using a stolen police car. "We are here to protect you from the government. We call on you to cooperate."
The overrunning of Fallujah and Ramadi, another Sunni stronghold, by Al Qaeda’s Iraqi branch in the Sunni heartland of western Anbar provinces is a blow to the Shiite-led government of Prime Minister al-Malik. His government has been struggling to contain discontent among the Sunni minority over Shiite political domination that has flared into increased violence for the past year.
Anbar province, a desert area on the borders with Syria and Jordan, has almost an entirely Sunni population. The area served as the heartland of the Sunni insurgency that rose up against American troops and the Iraqi government after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein. The insurgency was fueled by anger over the dislodgment of their community from power during Saddam’s rule and the rise of Shiites. It was then that Al Qaeda established its branch in the country.
Authorities earlier this week arrested a senior Sunni politician and dismantled a months-old sit-in in Ramadi sparking anger among Sunnis.
In an effort to ease tensions, Al-Maliki pulled the military out of Anbar cities to transfer security duties to local police, a top demand of Sunnis who see the army as a tool of Al-Maliki’s rule. Al Qaeda militants then erupted in Fallujah and Ramadi overrunning police station, driving out security forces and freeing prisoners.
A government official told The Associated Press that clashes were still under way, adding the militants remain in control of Fallujah and some parts of Ramadi. On Thursday government warplanes fired Hellfire missiles – recently supplied by the United States – at some militant positions.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
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