U.S. aircraft on Wednesday began providing air support for Iraqi forces fighting to retake Saddam Hussein’s hometown of Tikrit from the Islamic State, putting them on the same side with Iranian-backed Shiite militias.
In a statement, the coalition command said its forces were providing airstrikes, airborne intelligence-gathering and advising to Iraq’s military at the request of Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi.
“These strikes are intended to destroy [Islamic State] strongholds with precision, thereby saving innocent Iraqi lives while minimizing collateral damage to infrastructure,” said U.S. Army Lt. Gen. James L. Terry, commander of coalition forces. “This will further enable Iraqi forces under Iraqi command to maneuver and defeat [the Islamic State] in the vicinity of Tikrit.”
Iraqi forces, assisted by Iranian-backed Shiite militias, have been fighting for control of Tikrit. Iranian advisers are also on the scene, including Gen. Qassem Soleimani, commander of Iran’s Quds Force and a longtime U.S. nemesis.
CIA Director John Brennan told Fox on Sunday that Soleimani’s work in Iraq was creating instability and repeated the Obama administration’s insistence that it would not cooperate with Iran in the fight against the Islamic State.
