The Islamic State has released new images from recent fighting in Ramadi, the provincial capital of Anbar province. The photos appear to have been taken in the Albu Fahd area, which is just east of the city.
The pictures were produced by the Islamic State’s Wilayat Anbar and then disseminated on Twitter by its supporters. The terrorist organization has taken to releasing its propaganda that way as the social media site has cracked down on official Islamic State accounts. The provincial division (Wilayat) of Anbar is one of the Islamic State’s 20 declared provinces.
In the photo set, two suicide bombers are showcased. One of them, Abu Abdullah al Tunisi, is a Tunisian, while the other, Abu Farhan al Jazrawi, is a Saudi. The two are the most recent foreign suicide bombers lauded by the terrorist organization. On Dec. 11, the Islamic State released images of three suicide bombers from France, Saudi Arabia, and Syria who detonated near the central Iraqi city of Samarra. Other suicide bombers from Germany, Denmark, Chechnya, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, Iran, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Tajikistan have all been featured by the Islamic State in a move to bolster recruitment and highlight itself as a global jihadist group with many different nationalities in its ranks. [For more information on foreign suicide bombers used by the Islamic State in Iraq, see these LWJ reports: Islamic State overruns Badr Brigade position near Samarra; German, Saudi, and Turkish Islamic State fighters launch complex suicide attack; and ISIS again touts French and other foreign suicide bombers.]
Other photographs showcase the destruction caused by the suicide bombs, many of which are too graphic to show. The last few pictures show mortar rounds being fired at Iraqi military or tribal forces positions.
Ramadi came under a renewed assault by the Islamic State on Nov. 21 after the group had taken around 60 percent of the city in January. The group’s fighters attacked Anbar provincial government offices and the police headquarters in the center of the city, as well as the al Huz and al Mua’almim districts in the renewed offensive. The Sunni tribal strongholds of the districts of Albu Hayis, Albu Fahd, and Albu Alwan also came under attack. [For more information on the fighting in Ramadi, see these LWJ reports: Islamic State launches assault on Ramadi, Islamic State releases images from recent fighting in Ramadi, and Islamic State photos highlight group’s grip on Ramadi.]
Photos released from Albu Fahd can be seen below:
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