Iraqi army soldiers gain full control of oil-rich Baiji

Iran Press TV

Fri Nov 14, 2014 12:17PM GMT

Iraqi troops battling the ISIL Takfiri militants have accomplished their mop-up operation in the strategic northern city of Baiji, which is home to the country's largest oil refinery.

On Friday, Iraqi forces backed by volunteer forces established security and stability in the oil-rich city, located some 210 kilometers (130 miles) north of the capital, Baghdad, following its liberation from the ISIL terrorists days earlier.

Iraqi soldiers and volunteer forces managed to free the central areas of Baiji in the northern province of Salahuddin from ISIL on November 11.

On November 9, Iraqi military forces reached the central areas of Baiji in an attempt to end the ISIL siege of an oil refinery located on the outskirts of the city.

The ISIL militants took over Baiji in June. The city of about 200,000 people is also home to the country's largest oil refinery.

Analysts say the liberation of Baiji, which is located on a main road to the northern city of Mosul, will choke off the supply lines of ISIL.

The ISIL terrorists currently control large areas of Iraq. The group sent its militants into Iraq in June, seizing large parts of land straddling the border between Syria and Iraq.

The Iraqi army has so far managed to make numerous gains in the fight against the ISIL militants, pledging to continue the battle against the extremist group.

The militants have been carrying out horrific acts of violence, including public decapitations, against Iraqi communities such as Shias, Sunnis, Kurds and Christians.

MP/HSN/KA