‘Game Over.’ Iraqi Forces See Beginning of the End for ISIS<br />6, 2017<br />HAWIJA, Iraq — The jubilant outpouring that erupted in the heart of Hawija on Friday, the day after Iraqi forces claimed victory there, celebrated more than the fact<br />that the Islamic State militants had finally been routed from the city, their last major urban stronghold in Iraq.<br />General Aboda said all militants captured in Hawija were turned over to Iraqi military intelligence officers.<br />Col. Kareem Aboud of a federal police SWAT unit, who was providing security for food deliveries to displaced Hawija district residents, said he was not convinced<br />that the Islamic State was on the verge of complete defeat in Iraq.<br />For many of the Shiite Muslim militiamen, who sped through the streets in pickups, flying militia colors<br />and blaring religious music on loudspeakers, and the federal paramilitary police, who feasted on mutton and rice, their swift two-week victory represented the beginning of the end for militants who just three years ago ruled a third of Iraq.<br />Kareem Gita, a Shiite militiaman who commanded a checkpoint in the shattered city center Friday, said many militants had lost the will to fight.<br />The military coalition in Hawija included Iranian-trained militiamen, federal police officers and local Sunni tribal fighters.
