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| Iraqi forces battle Islamic State in streets of strategic Tikrit | Iraqi forces battle Islamic State in streets of strategic Tikrit |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| BAGHDAD —The fight for Tikrit moved into the city’s streets Wednesday as Iraqi forces pushed past bomb-laced cordons in attempts to oust Islamic State militants. | BAGHDAD —The fight for Tikrit moved into the city’s streets Wednesday as Iraqi forces pushed past bomb-laced cordons in attempts to oust Islamic State militants. |
| The clashes marked the first within the city limits since the government launched its offensive to retake the area earlier this month, and signaled possible gains in the important showdown over the northern city. | The clashes marked the first within the city limits since the government launched its offensive to retake the area earlier this month, and signaled possible gains in the important showdown over the northern city. |
| Regaining Tikrit would give the Iraqi government and its allied fighters — some closely linked to Iran — a key stepping stone in efforts to push farther north into Islamic State-held territory, including the major city of Mosul. | Regaining Tikrit would give the Iraqi government and its allied fighters — some closely linked to Iran — a key stepping stone in efforts to push farther north into Islamic State-held territory, including the major city of Mosul. |
| Iraqi troops and militias entered Tikrit at 4 a.m. local time, a government spokesman said, after approaching the city from several directions and besieging Islamic State fighters inside. | Iraqi troops and militias entered Tikrit at 4 a.m. local time, a government spokesman said, after approaching the city from several directions and besieging Islamic State fighters inside. |
| A volunteer force known as Hashd al-Shaabi also took control of the Tikrit Military Hospital on Wednesday, the group’s media office said. Pro-government forces clashed with Islamic State militants elsewhere in Tikrit, including in the city’s largest neighborhood, Qadisiya. | A volunteer force known as Hashd al-Shaabi also took control of the Tikrit Military Hospital on Wednesday, the group’s media office said. Pro-government forces clashed with Islamic State militants elsewhere in Tikrit, including in the city’s largest neighborhood, Qadisiya. |
| The jihadists have laid thousands of improvised explosive devices seeking to slow the advance of Iraqi troops in the city, which is 115 miles north of Baghdad, security officials said. | The jihadists have laid thousands of improvised explosive devices seeking to slow the advance of Iraqi troops in the city, which is 115 miles north of Baghdad, security officials said. |
| On Tuesday, militants destroyed a bridge linking Tikrit to its northern suburbs, hampering Iraqi military efforts to recapture the city. | On Tuesday, militants destroyed a bridge linking Tikrit to its northern suburbs, hampering Iraqi military efforts to recapture the city. |
| Still, government-led forces appeared to maintain their momentum, which was in its tenth day on Wednesday. The Islamic State seized the city in June, after a stunning offensive across most of northern Iraq. Tikrit was once the hometown of former Iraqi strongman Saddam Hussein. | Still, government-led forces appeared to maintain their momentum, which was in its tenth day on Wednesday. The Islamic State seized the city in June, after a stunning offensive across most of northern Iraq. Tikrit was once the hometown of former Iraqi strongman Saddam Hussein. |
| The offensive to rout the militants from Tikrit was announced March 1, and includes a combined force of tens of thousands of troops and predominantly Shiite militias, backed by Iran. | The offensive to rout the militants from Tikrit was announced March 1, and includes a combined force of tens of thousands of troops and predominantly Shiite militias, backed by Iran. |
| The United States has been noticeably absent from the operations, despite striking Islamic State targets elsewhere in Iraq. Iraqi officials have suggested that U.S. air power is not necessary to dislodge the militants from the city, raising concerns over the U.S.-Iraqi alliance to fight the Islamic State. | The United States has been noticeably absent from the operations, despite striking Islamic State targets elsewhere in Iraq. Iraqi officials have suggested that U.S. air power is not necessary to dislodge the militants from the city, raising concerns over the U.S.-Iraqi alliance to fight the Islamic State. |
| Also in the north, aircraft from the U.S.-led coalition have been raiding Islamic State positions in an offensive by peshmerga forces from the Kurdistan Regional Government. The operations, west and south of Kirkuk, about 70 miles northeast of Tikrit, have pressured militants in the area and forced them to retreat to their stronghold in the Iraqi town of Hawija, Kurdish and Iraqi officials said. | Also in the north, aircraft from the U.S.-led coalition have been raiding Islamic State positions in an offensive by peshmerga forces from the Kurdistan Regional Government. The operations, west and south of Kirkuk, about 70 miles northeast of Tikrit, have pressured militants in the area and forced them to retreat to their stronghold in the Iraqi town of Hawija, Kurdish and Iraqi officials said. |
| On Wednesday, a pro-government Sunni fighter from the Tikrit suburb of al-Alam posted photos on Facebook inside the town, which was taken by government forces on Tuesday. | On Wednesday, a pro-government Sunni fighter from the Tikrit suburb of al-Alam posted photos on Facebook inside the town, which was taken by government forces on Tuesday. |
| Alam is a stronghold of the Sunni Jubbour tribe, which has joined with Shiite militias to oust the jihadists from the area. In Abu Ajeel, a village east of Tikrit, Shiite gunmen torched the homes of Sunni residents, underscoring sectarian tensions even as Sunni and Shiite fighters collaborate to fight the extremists. | Alam is a stronghold of the Sunni Jubbour tribe, which has joined with Shiite militias to oust the jihadists from the area. In Abu Ajeel, a village east of Tikrit, Shiite gunmen torched the homes of Sunni residents, underscoring sectarian tensions even as Sunni and Shiite fighters collaborate to fight the extremists. |
| “Thank God, al-Alam is doing excellent,” the Sunni fighter, Omar al-Jebbara, wrote on his Facebook page on Wednesday. | “Thank God, al-Alam is doing excellent,” the Sunni fighter, Omar al-Jebbara, wrote on his Facebook page on Wednesday. |
| Jebbara posted images of himself inside the town, including one of him kneeling next to the grave of a female member of the tribe, Oumaya al-Jebbara, who died fighting the Islamic State in Alam last summer. Jebbara said pro-government forces had erected their own checkpoints in Alam. | Jebbara posted images of himself inside the town, including one of him kneeling next to the grave of a female member of the tribe, Oumaya al-Jebbara, who died fighting the Islamic State in Alam last summer. Jebbara said pro-government forces had erected their own checkpoints in Alam. |
| But in western Iraq, Islamic State fighters remained on the offensive on Wednesday. Local officials said the militants detonated as many as seven car bombs in a sophisticated attack in the city of Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province. Iraqi troops are battling the jihadists there, but with mixed results. | But in western Iraq, Islamic State fighters remained on the offensive on Wednesday. Local officials said the militants detonated as many as seven car bombs in a sophisticated attack in the city of Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province. Iraqi troops are battling the jihadists there, but with mixed results. |
| About 300 U.S. military advisers are stationed al the al-Asad airbase, also in Anbar. | About 300 U.S. military advisers are stationed al the al-Asad airbase, also in Anbar. |
| In Syria, meanwhile, Islamic State militants opened an offensive against a predominantly Kurdish town of Ras al-Ayn on the Syrian-Turkish frontier, the Associated Press reported, citing a Kurdish official and an activist group. | In Syria, meanwhile, Islamic State militants opened an offensive against a predominantly Kurdish town of Ras al-Ayn on the Syrian-Turkish frontier, the Associated Press reported, citing a Kurdish official and an activist group. |
| Kurdish Democratic Union Party spokesman Nawaf Khalil described the Islamic State group’s attack as “wide-scale and powerful.” | Kurdish Democratic Union Party spokesman Nawaf Khalil described the Islamic State group’s attack as “wide-scale and powerful.” |
| Mustafa Salim contributed to this report. | Mustafa Salim contributed to this report. |
| Read more: | |
| Islamic State appears to be fraying from within | |
| Unusual alliance provides hope in fight against Islamic State in Iraq | |
| Strains plague Iraqi, U.S. assessments of long-term fight against Islamic State |