The battle for Mosul begins… The first day of the offensive against Daesh in their proclaimed ‘capital’ started yesterday. Iraqi government troops, who have been trained by a US-led coalition, and Kurdish forces advanced to recapture the city, which is the terrorist group’s last major stronghold in Iraq. The US are also extending support through air strikes. As many as 30,000 Iraqi troops and 4,000 other fighters have descended on Mosul, and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRIC) has noted that the battle could create one million refugees.
#Mosul was a top trend on Twitter, and Tweeps were posting live updates through the hasthags #MosulOps and #Mosul_Offensive. Some noted how social media has changed the way we communicate about war. Others simply expressed support for the troops, despite doubting the effectiveness of the battle.
@Charles_Lister: #Mosul operation vs #ISIS begins… Heavy US-directed artillery now striking targets in the city’s east and west. Huge tests ahead.”
@PaulStrobel: “#Mosul_Offensive is being livestreamed. Whatever you think of it, fascinating how war is communicated today.”
@AdrienJaulmes: “The first battle in history to be announced with a Tweet… #Mosul_Offensive #Iraq”
@AsraNomani: “If it’s for real, much success to #MosulOps but the ideology remains like poison gas.”
@Sazan_Mandalawi: “Now half of the Daeshis will shave their bears, have a shower & blend in #Mosul #MosulOps”
@melisaraimmo: “Our thoughts tonight are for our brave Peshmerga fighters, who are suffering injuries & fatalies in #MosulOps, to free our people!”
@MustafaNajafi: “Iraqis have been waiting for this day. The day they can free the whole of Iraq from the bloodthirsty terrorists #MosulOps”
@BenjaminKweskin: “Cue the next batch of ‘#experts’ on how to best ‘liberate’ #Mosul #MosulOps #ISIS #sectarianism”
Over one million people have been talking about Mosul on Facebook for the past couple of days. Social media users were quick to trace the history of how Iraqi, US, Kurdish forces have gotten themselves into this battle. Others noted that the battle may not necessarily mean the end of the war.
Kevin Myers: “While ISIS [Daesh] came to be because of Bush launching an unnecessary war in Iraq, it is now up to the Iraqis to drive them out.
Daniel Cohn: “Drive ISIS out? Allow them to flee? To go where? To Syria? And what of the one million civilians? Will they be protected from sectarian revenge? Once again, the enabling of Arab proxies to dictate the terms of combat operations and strategy contains within it the seeds of brutal revenge and continuing sectarian war. […] A slowly constricting “cordon sanitaire” is IMHO the preferred strategy.”
Jess Groth Banke: “Finally, after almost 2.5 years of ISIS oppressive and inhuman rule of Mosul, the Iraqi government and allies have started the offensive to liberate the city. Hopefully the citizens of Mosul will not experience a lot of suffering.”
Jarred Moss: “Iraqi forces are launching an offensive against ISIS in Mosul. To defeat it would be a giant win and deal a heavy blow against what they consider to be their ‘caliphate’. This is an important battle. Say a prayer today that God would be with these Iraqi forces and that the ongoing battle to defeat ISIS would take a big leap forward!”
David Saintloth: “Unfortunate that due to the original US blunder of going into Iraq in the first place [is how] we created them, in order now to (hopefully) destroy them… Years and tens of thousands of innocents as casualties later…”
Sarah O’Connell: “This is one of the things we should be hearing stump speeches and debate questions about. What is the US role going to be in turning the recapture of Mosul into a positive advancement toward peace in Iraq, instead of another kind of civil war that obscures the scattering ISIL forces? Donald Trump has to have a policy that shows he can do more than design a Mosul golf course.”
Lindsay Marie Lee: “Mosul is the last and largest ISIS stronghold in Iraq. Good luck to these fighters in the coming months. The US is supporting them from the air. Let’s cross our fighters that these combined forces can stay combined long enough to recapture this city.”
