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Iraqi security forces and Shiite fighters from the Popular Mobilization units celebrate outside the provincial council building in Tikrit, April 1, 2015. Getty

Last Updated Apr 1, 2015 3:13 PM EDT

TIKRIT, Iraq -- Iraq declared a "magnificent victory" Wednesday over the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in Tikrit, a key step in driving the militants out of their biggest strongholds.

Iraqi Defense Minister Khalid al-Obeidi made the pronouncement, saying security forces have "accomplished their mission" in the monthlong offensive to rid Saddam Hussein's hometown and the broader Salahuddin province of the militant group.

"We have the pleasure, with all our pride, to announce the good news of a magnificent victory," Obeidi said in a video statement. "Here we come to you, Anbar! Here we come to you, Nineveh, and we say it with full resolution, confidence, and persistence," naming other provinces under the sway of the extremists.

Extremists from ISIS seized Tikrit last summer during its advance across northern and western Iraq. The battle for Tikrit is seen as a key step toward eventually driving the militants out of Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city and the provincial capital of Nineveh.

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U.S.-led airstrikes targeted ISIS vehicles, heavy weapons and fighting positions around Tikrit. In Iraq, the U.S. is fighting on the same side as...

Iraqi forces, including soldiers, police officers, Shiite militias and Sunni tribes, launched a large-scale operation to recapture Tikrit on March 2. Last week, the United States launched airstrikes on the embattled city at the request of the Iraqi government.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the victory was compelling evidence that the U.S. strategy against ISIS was working. He said the Tikrit operation had been stalled for weeks but that coalition airstrikes and advancing local forces apparently caused ISIS fighters to withdraw.

Read the original:
Iraq claims "magnificent victory" over ISIS

By Qassim Abdul-Zahra and Sameer N. Yacoub The Associated Press

A Shiite fighter whose group was working with Iraqi forces takes a bicycle ride Wednesday in Tikrit after Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's declaration of victory in the battle to retake the city. (Ahmad Al-Rubaye, AFP/Getty Images)

TIKRIT, Iraq The government declared victory in Tikrit on Wednesday over extremists of the Islamic State group, and it warned the militants holding other Iraqi provinces that they would be the next to fall.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi walked along a street in Tikrit, carrying an Iraqi flag and surrounded by forces.

Across the border in Syria, however, Islamic State fighters made their deepest foray yet into the capital of Damascus by infiltrating a Palestinian refugee camp, according to opposition activists and Palestinian officials.

Iraq's victory in Tikrit was seen as a key step toward eventually driving the Islamic State out of Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city and the capital of Nineveh province.

Defense Minister Khalid al-Obeidi announced the victory, saying security forces have "accomplished their mission" in the month-long offensive to rid Saddam Hussein's hometown and the broader Salahuddin province of the militant group.

Al-Abadi said that military engineering units still need more time to clear Tikrit of booby traps and looked to the next steps for the city and province.

"God willing, there will be a fund to rebuild areas destroyed by Daesh and the war," al-Abadi said, using the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State group.

The extremists seized Tikrit last summer during its advance out of Syria and across northern and western Iraq.

Originally posted here:
Iraq celebrates victory over Islamic State in Tikrit

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