Ex-Mosul governor says sleeping cells inside Mosul would be activated against Daesh during the operation for liberating the city
Two trained groups inside Mosul are waiting for the joint operation against Daesh as they would be one of the most important powers against the terror group in the city, said ex-governor of the northern Iraqi city.
Alwaght- Atheel al-Nujaifi, who was the governor of Mosul before the city was seized by Daesh terrorists in 2014, had established a militia group dubbed al-Hashd al-Watani.
He said that there are two groups of sleeping cells inside Mosul, which will be activated during the operation to hit the terror group from inside the city.
“There are two types of powers inside [the city]. These groups were trained especially and they are working as Special Forces. One is Mim / M (for “Muqawama" or resistance), which has been doing important jobs in recent days. The second group is Tahrir and Salam group. These are the sleeping cells in Mosul," al-Nujaifi said.
“We will activate this group when the coalition forces enter the city; they would join the operation," he added.
Atheel al-Nujaifi said that the Iraqi military, al-Hashdi al-Watani and Iraqi police would participate in the joint operation to liberate the city.
He stated that two divisions of al-Hashdi al-Watani are ready to join the offensive.
“These groups were trained by the Turkish military in the Bashiqa camp around 20 kilometers from Mosul," he said, underlining that Turkey's military presence in the area is vital for the success of the operation.
“In my opinion, talks on withdrawing Turkey's military from the Bashiqa camp had been brought up in a very wrong time. Still we don't know what the result of the war would be. The situation is very dangerous, there are many troubles," former Mosul governor Al-Nujaifi warned.
He said that not only Iraq, but also Turkey can face very serious trouble during the Mosul operation.
“We need Turkey's support to fight against Daesh," he underlined.
The former Mosul governor said that there could be a humanitarian crisis after the operation.
“If millions of people run towards Turkey's border, you cannot stop them," al-Nujaifi said
Al-Nujaifi also recalled that Turkey's military is staying in Bashiqa camp under an Ankara-Baghdad agreement.
“The Iraq Prime Minister and Defense Minister had discussed the issue with the Turkish government during their Ankara visit in 2014. Even the Iraqi Defense Minister visited the camp in recent months," said the former governor pointing out that Baghdad's claims against Turkish military in Bashiqa was full of controversy and political motivated.
While speaking on the plan for handling the aftermath of the Mosul operation, “This is the very important issue," he said.
Forces from outside should come into the city following the operation, and this must be the Sunni group of al-Hashdi al-Watani, he stated.
“The city should be run by people from Mosul. If the operation forces try to occupy the city, this could lead the Mosul scenario to being more dangerous."
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