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Soldier whose stolen-valor scam began in Iraq will end in prison Stars and Stripes WASHINGTON After lying about a rocket in Iraq, post-traumatic stress disorder and a brain injury; after bilking 16 agencies out of more than $600,000; and after copping to two counts of fraud last year, former National Guard soldier Darryl Lee ...

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Soldier whose stolen-valor scam began in Iraq will end in prison - Stars and Stripes

OTTAWA The commander of the Canadian Forces mission in Iraq and Syria says he expects the government to extend the operation past its scheduled expiry date at the end of the month.

Brig.-Gen. Dan MacIsaac told The Canadian Press that he'slookingforward to seeing a renewed commitment of more than 800 military personnel in the international anti-terror coalition as part of Wednesday's long-awaited defence policy review.

Details of that and other future foreign military deployments are expected to be unveiled when Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan and Gen. Jonathan Vance, the chief of the defence staff, release the government's new blueprint for national defence.

The table for that defence review will be set in a major foreign policy speech Tuesday by Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland.That speechwill affirm "multilateralism and rules-based international systems, human rights, gender equality, the fight against climate change, and economic benefits being shared by all," the government said in a statement.

Freeland's speech will be the Liberal government's attempt to define its military, development, diplomatic and trade priorities, and how Canada plans to navigate a world order thrown into disarray by disruptive events such as the election of Donald Trump and the rise of anti-trade forces, sources say.

The speech is meant to serve as the "umbrella" for Wednesday's defence review and the release of the international development review later this month, said a source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity becauseit was still a work in progress.

Wednesday's defence review is expected to lay out the military's priorities for future overseas deployments, and outline government's 20-year plan for spending billions of dollars on military hardware to upgrade warships and fighter jets, among other things.

Sajjan has said the review will also dovetail with the government's broader innovation agenda and will explain how the military will partner with the defence industry to create jobs by developing of cutting-edge equipment.

For soldiers such as MacIsaac, who is overseeing Canada's contribution to the international anti-terror fight, it will bring more clarity to ongoing military operations.

"We're looking forward to the government releasing the defence policy review, likely in the next couple of days," MacIsaac said in a lengthy telephone interview Monday from his headquarters in Kuwait.

"I foresee government providing defence further direction, and the government of Canada is committed to contributing to defeating Daesh in Iraq and Syria," he said, using the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

"We're definitely here past the 30th of June."

The government has not formally announced an extension of the mission, which is Canada's contribution to the international coalition of more than 60 countries that is trying to degrade ISIL.

MacIsaac said the coalition is continually degrading ISIL's command and control, weapons making and financing operations across Iraq and Syria, and has reclaimed a swath of land the size of Nova Scotia.

"They've had to move many a headquarters and many a leader, and we are tracking those changes," he explained.

Though he didn't specifically reference the recent attacks in London, Manchester and elsewhere, MacIsaac said ISIL is losing the ability todirect attacks across the globe.

"There are many Daesh-influenced attacks but I'm not aware of any Daesh-directed attacks," he said. "So it's interesting to watch them now try to claim when someone does something criminal They're on their hind foot."

Asked if he had a message for war-weary Canadians, MacIsaac replied:

"Canada is fortunate. We live in a safe place. But we have a duty to take collective action with our friends to advance the liberty of others and security at home.

"If you think you have values, you've got to work to show it."

Freeland's speech will address how Canada plans to project the "hard power" of its military and use its "soft-power" diplomacy, sources say.

She will describe how and why Canada was able to play a role in shaping the multilateral order that was built after the Second World War because the country suffered heavy losses fighting the two world wars, sources say.

Now, with the world's multilateral order under threat and theglobe in a period of constant change, those sources say Freeland will say the countrymust nowwork to shape the shifting global forces to the Canada's advantage.

Much of that disruption is due to Trump's "America First" foreign policy throwing cold water on NATO and the G7, while dumping the Paris agreement on fighting climate change.

The source said the speech may not mention Trump directly, but it will re-enforce Canada's strong economic ties with the U.S., and how Canada's foreign policy diverges notably on climate with its southern neighbour.

Mike Blanchfield, The Canadian Press

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Canadian general expects extension of anti-ISIL mission in Iraq and Syria - rdnewsnow.com

With the looming collapse of the Islamic State in Mosul, Iraq is already taking steps to reestablish security and plans to reignite development in Anbar province. Reconstruction and economic growth along its border region with Jordan will be paramount for Iraqs political survival.

The defeat of the so-called Islamic State (IS) in Iraq is imminent and much of the focus on Baghdad will involve its security prowess. However, the long term test will be the ability to harness and sustain relations with its surrounding Arab countries through trade and freedom of movement. To reassert itself in the post-IS environment, Baghdad depends not just on the future of the restive Anbar province, but on the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to ensure Iraqs primary gateway to the world remains open.

Al Anbar Province is the largest land area in Iraq and borders three neighboring countries, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Jordan. The sparsely populated region paid a steep price in Baghdads quest to liberate the country from IS. Ramadi and Fallujah had entire districts destroyed as the Iraqi security forces and coalition targeted the militants with airstrikes and conducted siege warfare. Across the entire province a deep distrust of the Iraqi government remains high, a sentiment which drove many of Iraqs insurgents from underground nationalist cells to the jihadist ideology of IS.

Violence remains a threat to both Iraqi security forces and civilians in Anbar. An attack in the town of Rutba killed 10 troops at the end of April. This strategically-important town is the last major urban area before the frontier with Jordan. Rutba was captured by the extremists in May 2014 who quickly proceeded to seize the border. The latest attacks by IS are likely in response to an uptick in security maneuvers by anti-IS tribal elements north of Rutba earlier in the month.

Iraq has taken measures to enhance security along the highway connecting Baghdad to Jordan. Social media reports that the Iraqi army recently deployed more troops along the main transportation route. In March, a joint effort between the Iraqi We Are Coming, Nineveh Operations Command and the Iraqi East Anbar Operations unit landed the arrest of a top IS leader in Anbar province. Iraq is increasing military cooperation with the Syrian government by coordinating airstrikes against jihadist positions along the border region.

However, a spillover of violence from Syrias civil war remains a real threat. Hundreds of Syrian government troops, bolstered by some-3,000 Iranian-backed Shia militia troops, along with tanks, have moved into the desert town of Sabaa Biyar near where the Syrian, Iraqi, and Jordanian borders meet.

The move, likely made by the Assad regime to secure the Damascus-Baghdad highway, was met with a deadly US airstrike on a pro-Assad militia convoy. This was done to prevent the regime from closing in on the US Special Forces that are based at the al Tanf border facility in Syria near the Jordanian and Iraqi border. The same US garrison had also repelled a IS attack earlier in April. It is now appears that the US intends to prevent the Syrian government from reestablishing its own land route to its ally, Iran. The high likelihood that militiamen who were killed in the airstrikes were Iraqis who were recruited by Iran to fight in Syria may complicate things for both Washington and Baghdad.

Despite wariness amongst the Jordanian security establishment of Irans recent activities near the border and Iraq becoming part of the Iranian land corridor, Jordan has taken some tentative steps towards normalizing relations with Damascus after the Syrian Civil War. Jordans military officials have paid visits to Damascus and Moscow along with being the only predominantly Sunni Arab country to attend peace talks in Astana.

Of course, Iraq still retains one foot in the pro-Western camp as well. Jordan hosted Iraq and several western countries during the 7th Eager Lion military exercise which was held over an eleven day period and featured a border security component. Establishing a solid trade relationship with Jordan will be paramount since the majority of the Sunni world remains apprehensive of forging a new relationship with Iraq due to the heavy presence of Iran in the country.

The regional conflicts have taken their toll on Jordans economy. With a slow growth rate and an extremely high budget deficit, the Kingdom has struggled to attract tourism and to satisfy an increasingly restive youth. However, Jordan has not only remained stable, it has also successfully managed to retain its place in Washingtons foreign policy arena, especially with the arrival of the impulsive Trump Administration. King Abdullah has so far done well at maintaining the US-Jordan strategic relationship as well as guiding the new president through the nuances of Middle East politics. Baghdad will likely follow Jordans lead as it navigates its new relationship with the White House.

The Hashemite Kingdom has been a primary point of entry into conflict-ridden Iraq since the US occupation. Government development projects, military personnel, business travelers, and cultural exchanges programs between the West and Iraq all typically are funneled through Jordan. Due to Iraqs conflicts, many Jordanians regard the Iraqi refugees with a strong dose of suspicion. Iraq is still heavily dependent on Jordan as a gateway to the outside world, since the long isolated country has few other options. The United States has attempted to ease Iraqs isolation by helping Iraq to improve its relations with nearby countries, however, the success of these efforts has been mixed at best.

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Iraqs relationship with Jordan is paramount due to the misgivings of its southern neighbor, Saudi Arabia. For instance, Iraqs southern neighbor, Saudi Arabia, famously contracted Airbus Group to build a 600 mile border barrier along the Iraqi border. Recently, however, relations have slowly been looking up with the Saudis. Iraq was pleased that the Arar gateway to Saudi Arabia, almost 280 miles south of Ramadi, reopened in the summer of 2016. The flow of Iraqi religious pilgrims was able to continue for the first time since the start of the 2003 Iraq War. Relations are far from perfect, however. The Trump Administrations encouragement of talks between the Saudi government and Baghdad has yielded varying degrees of success, and the resumption of direct flights and a cancellation of Iraqs $30 billion debt still seem to be well off.

The recent release of a Qatari hunting party from the countrys royal al-Thani family, facilitated in conjunction with a population transfer deal in Syria along with ransom payments to the Iraqi Shia militia Kataib Hezbollah will make future dealings will the Arab Gulf States difficult. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi expressed dismay over the incident, a sign of contention within Iraqs ruling political elite about the status of Irans activities in their country.

For Jordan, the loss of land trade during the IS campaign has been a major economic pain, especially for a country with high unemployment and few natural resources. The Associated Press reported that trade earnings decreased from $1.16 billion in 2014 to $690 million in 2015. The situation is rapidly changing with new opportunities in sight. The two countries are working on eliminating customs fees from a long list of products aimed at improving and encouraging cross-border trade.

The two countries met in March to plan the development of regional energy resources. Jordans Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Ibrahim Saif noted that the first phase of the Basra-Aqaba pipeline, set to begin construction in 2017, would stretch from the southern Iraqi city of Basra through Najaf, and eventually link to the seaport of Aqaba in Jordan.

Jordans Minister of Industry, Trade and Supply, Yarub Qudah, said, Providing facilities, encouraging Iraqi investors in Jordan and expediting the construction of the Jordan-Iraqi oil pipeline topics featured prominently during the discussions.

This would be the first pipeline to straddle Iraq and Jordan since the ill-fated Mosul-Haifa pipeline, which passed through Jordan and reached the Mediterranean Sea. During the 1930-40s, Arab militants and the Zionist Irgun group frequently targeted it until it was finally terminated as the result of Israels victory in 1948. Talk of bringing the Mosul-Haifa line back to life after the US overthrow of Saddam Hussein quickly fell to the wayside.

In April, the Jordanian-Iraqi Business Council met in Amman to hammer out plans to revive cross-border trade. Among the items discussed were potential house projects in Iraq, logistical zones in the Iraq-Jordanian border areas and the construction of land ports with the capacity to facilitate the transport of commodities between the two countries. The Council has arranged to meet again in Baghdad this October.

Iraq also signed an agreement with the US-based company Olive Group to repair roads and 36 destroyed bridges, build rest areas, gas stations, and oversee security along the roads connecting the Tebril bordering crossing. In a sure sign of the post-IS political wrangling that lies ahead, many Iranian-backed Shia Iraqi factions expressed dismay that Baghdad would enlist the help of a private US company to achieve border and transportation security. Persistent rumors that the company is connected to Blackwater have added to the negative sentiments surrounding the project. Iraqi parliamentary figures are still pushing for greater cooperation with the Syrian government for securing the border. In addition, the US airstrikes in Syria against the regime-aligned Shia militia could also increase the chance of revenge attacks against US forces by the Shia Popular Mobilization Forces in Iraq.

Anbar province was the primary hideout for al Qaeda in Iraq, the precursor organization to IS. A leading Sunni politician, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, recently called for a historic compromise to prevent the country from breaking apart. Political reforms, decentralization, infrastructure development, and direct investment in Sunni areas are all key demands on the table. Baghdad has a new opportunity to heal these old wounds. To do this, it will rely on friendship with Jordan, however, events in Syria and at home may make the healing process trying and full of uncertainty.

Chris Solomon is the GRI Guest Post Editor and a Senior Analyst.As appears on:http://globalriskinsights.com/2017/06/iraq-looks-jordan/

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Collapse Of The Islamic State Looms, Iraq Looks To Jordan - Frontera News

SOUTHWEST ASIA, June 4, 2017 U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria yesterday, conducting 32 strikes consisting of 65 engagements, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Officials reported details of yesterday's strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 23 strikes consisting of 27 engagements against ISIS targets:

-- Near Abu Kamal, three strikes destroyed two ISIS wellheads and an ISIS pump jack.

-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, three strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed three ISIS wellheads and a vehicle.

-- Near Palmyra, a strike destroyed an ISIS pump jack.

-- Near Raqqa, 16 strikes engaged seven ISIS tactical units; destroyed 17 fighting positions, three vehicles and an ISIS excavator; and suppressed an ISIS tactical unit.

Strikes in Iraq

In Iraq, coalition military forces conducted nine strikes consisting of 38 engagements against ISIS targets:

-- Near Qaim, two strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle, a heavy machine gun and an ISIS staging area.

-- Near Beiji, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed an ISIS-held building and an ISIS staging area.

-- Near Kisik, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed a weapons cache.

-- Near Mosul, four strikes engaged three ISIS tactical units; destroyed 13 fighting positions, four mortar systems, four medium machine guns, two rocket-propelled-grenade systems, two vehicle-borne bombs and a heavy machine gun; damaged six fighting positions; and suppressed an ISIS tactical unit.

-- Near Rawah, a strike destroyed an ISIS staging area.

June 2 Strikes

Officials also reported that six strikes were conducted June 2 in Syria and Iraq for which details were not available in time for yesterday's report:

-- Near Abu Kamal, Syria, a strike destroyed four ISIS oil separation tanks and three oil storage tanks.

-- Near Raqqa, Syria, three strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed three fighting positions.

-- Near Mosul, Iraq, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and a sniper; destroyed six medium machine guns, four heavy machine guns, a rocket-propelled-grenade system and an unmanned aerial vehicle; damaged 11 ISIS supply roads; and suppressed a medium-machine-gun team.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

These strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to destroy ISIS in Iraq and Syria. The destruction of ISIS targets in Iraq and Syria also further limits the group's ability to project terror and conduct external operations throughout the region and the rest of the world, task force officials said.

The list above contains all strikes conducted by fighter, attack, bomber, rotary-wing or remotely piloted aircraft; rocket-propelled artillery; and some ground-based tactical artillery when fired on planned targets, officials noted.

Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike, they added. A strike, as defined by the coalition, refers to one or more kinetic engagements that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single or cumulative effect.

For example, task force officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIS vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against a group of ISIS-held buildings and weapon systems in a compound, having the cumulative effect of making that facility harder or impossible to use. Strike assessments are based on initial reports and may be refined, officials said.

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Strikes Continue in Effort to Defeat ISIS in Syria, Iraq - Department of Defense

The gravestone of an unidentified man found dead in a trench in Gogjali and buried by residents.

In 15 of the cases, local armed forces told a foreign journalist that the men were extrajudicially killed by government security forces who had them in custody under suspicion of Islamic State (also known as ISIS) affiliation. In the remaining cases, reported by local and international sources, the sites of the apparent executions all in government held territory raise concerns about government responsibility for the killings. A foreign journalist also said that a government official told them that a Sunni Popular Mobilization Forces (known as the PMF or Hashd al-Sha'abi) unit, which is part of the government forces working to retake Mosul, was responsible for the extrajudicial killing of 25 men in their custody and dumping the bodies in the Tigris River.

Extrajudicial executions during an armed conflict are war crimes and if widespread or systematic, carried out as part of policy, would constitute crimes against humanity.

On May 13 and 15, 2017, two groups of aid workers and a foreign journalist said that they saw groups of corpses, 15 bodies in all, by the side of a road between the village of Athba and town of Hammam al-Alil, about 15 kilometers south of west Mosul. The area is entirely under the control of Iraqi government forces. One group said they had driven past the area a day earlier and the bodies had not been there, suggesting they were killed on May 12 or 13.

Local armed forces at the nearest checkpoint told the journalist that they saw Iraqi security forces bring the men to the area and shoot them. The journalist observed many bullet casings in the area on May 15. The journalist found an identity card on one of the bodies and confirmed with a contact within the National Security Service, a security body under the ultimate control of the prime minister, that the name was on their government database of about 90,000 people wanted for ISIS-affiliation.

Human Rights Watch obtained seven photos of the bodies at the site, which show the corpses in various lying and kneeling positions, all blindfolded with their hands bound with plastic handcuffs or fabric.

Human Rights Watch shared these photos with Stefan Schmitt of the International Forensic Program at Physicians for Human Rights, who said that there were no indications that the bodies were dragged or placed in the locations, such as drag marks or shifting of clothing. The positioning of at least two of the bodies was consistent with kneeling prior to execution and then falling forward, he said, and he concluded that it was likely the victims were executed in the place they were found.

An officer of the PMF 90th Brigade told Human Rights Watch over the phone that his forces were holding detainees in bathrooms of abandoned homes in Safina, a village 20 kilometers north of Qayyarah, along the Tigris River, and said they had business with the men they were holding. He said no visitors were allowed at the detention sites. On May 21, a foreign journalist told Human Rights Watch that a government official informed them that the 90th Brigade was holding alleged ISIS affiliates in the same village. According to the journalist, the official said the 90th Brigade had been holding detainees there for at least four months, and he personally knew of at least 25 detainees held there whom the 90th Brigade had executed and dumped into the river.

In several other cases, bound and blindfolded corpses of men whose bodies bore signs of being executed were found in government held parts in and around Mosul, aid workers and journalists told Human Rights Watch.

At the end of April 2017, an aid worker visited the morgue at Qayyarah hospital that had reopened about two months earlier. Human Rights Watch reviewed a photo the aid worker took inside the morgue of a large pile of bodies. On the top of the pile was a man who had been shot. He was lying chest down, with a blindfold and with his hands bound with plastic handcuffs. Human Rights Watch visited the hospital in mid-May and two head doctors told researchers that they had received orders from the health and defense ministers that they were not to respond to any information requests on the morgue, or allow any visitors. They did not provide a reason, but said it was a red line.

In late January, another foreign journalist showed Human Rights Watch pictures of the bodies of two bound men in a residential neighborhood of east Mosul fully under the control of Iraqi forces that he had taken two days earlier. Residents said they knew nothing about the identities of the men or circumstances of their death. Also in late January, Human Rights Watch interviewed a resident of the outskirts of Gogjali, a suburb of east Mosul, who pointed out a spot where he had found the body of a blindfolded man in the mud next to a trench. He and neighbors had buried the body. He said he knew nothing about the mans death or identity.

If Iraqi authorities want civilians who spent over two years living under ISIS to feel safe and protected, they need to ensure that anyone responsible for murdering prisoners is brought to justice, Fakih said.

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Iraq: Dozens Found Handcuffed, Executed in, around Mosul ... - Human Rights Watch