UNIPATH STAFF
Eradicating Daesh was the main topic at the February 2017 Al Anbar Leaders Conference, in which coalition members reaffirmed their support for Iraqi and regional tribal officials. Australian Army Brig. Adam Findlay, then commander of the Special Operations Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve (Iraq), stated that after liberating Mosul the coalition will help remove Daesh from Al Anbar province and facilitate future meetings with Iraqi security forces and tribal leaders.
At the conference, which focused on equipping and providing logistical support for coalition partner tribes in the area, Iraqi Army Maj. Gen. Numan Abd Nagim al-Zubi and Iraqi Army Maj. Gen. Qassim Mohammad Salih al-Muhammadi emphasized their own support of efforts to eradicate Daesh.
Tribal fighters are capable of defeating Daesh, Qassim said, and he is confident that tribal fighters will clear and hold the land. Other tribal sheikhs discussed their manpower and logistics capabilities, their working relationships with Iraqi security forces and their fight with Daesh.
Mabrook Hamid Mihadi, mayor of Haditha, said several areas under his control have already wiped out Daesh. Work remains, he noted, to secure the borders of these areas.