Iraqi PM asks for help rebuilding, resettling displaced

By Hadi Hassan

BAGHDAD

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Wednesday called on an Islamic military alliance to help repatriate Iraqis displaced by conflict and rebuild areas damaged in recent fighting with Daesh terrorists.

Al-Abadi issued his appeal at a press conference held at his personal Baghdad residence following a meeting of the Iraqi cabinet.

In December of 2015, Saudi Arabia announced the launch of an Anti-Terrorism Islamic Alliance comprised of 41 Muslim states, including Turkey, Pakistan, Malaysia, Egypt and the Gulf States.

At Wednesday’s press conference, al-Abadi also described an army campaign to retake Daesh-held Mosul as "successful", saying Iraqi forces had helped save civilian lives and "significantly degraded" the terrorist group’s capabilities.

"The world owes a debt of gratitude to Iraq, which is singlehandedly fighting terror," he asserted.

Last October, the Iraqi army -- backed by U.S.-led coalition airstrikes and local allies on the ground -- began a wide-ranging campaign to retake Mosul, which Daesh overran in mid-2014.

On the domestic political front, al-Abadi said that his government had set Sept. 16 as the date for Iraq’s next provincial elections.

The move comes amid calls by certain political parties to postpone the polls to next year in light of ongoing military operations against Daesh.