From A Mountain, Kurds Keep Watch On ISIS In Mosul
Imagine standing on top of a mountain, looking down at your home in the valley below, and being unable to go there — even for a visit.
That's the situation for some Iraqi Kurds from the city of Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city. The group that calls itself the Islamic State, or ISIS, controls Mosul, flying its flags over the outskirts of the strategic northern Iraqi town.
A major military offensive is planned in the coming months to retake Mosul from ISIS, a senior U.S. military official says. The operation is expected to take place in April or May, and involve some 20,000 to 25,000 Iraqi troops.
For now, the Kurds must wait. They control the mountain that overlooks the city, and atop that mountain that they stand all day, behind banks of sand bags, listening to their enemy below.
Hussein Ali (foreground) is among the Kurdish fighters standing guard atop Bashiqah, a mountain northwest of Mosul, Iraq. He has been here since August and is desperate to retake the city from Islamic State fighters.
Sometimes, the walkie-talkie chatter is something as mundane as men making plans to meet up for lunch. Other times, it's not so benign.
The men below say, "Haidar is coming your way."
"Did you hear the sound?" our translator says. "Haidar, when he say Haidar, he mean the airplane."
And sure enough, we hear a low buzzing sound, though there's no airstrike this time. (The Kurds gave NPR permission to disclose the Islamic State's codeword for "airplane" and other information.)
'This Is My Village'
At night sometimes, the Kurds say they listen to the men down below order specific women — by name — to be sent to them. They are women and girls who have been taken captive from the villages that ISIS conquered. It drives the Kurdish fighters crazy not to be able to do anything.
ISIS overtook Mosul in June; Hussein Ali has been on top of this mountain since August and is desperate to go fight.
"This is my village, I want to control my village," he says. "I don't want to stay here."
Last week ISIS sent a few suicide bombers climbing up the hill. Ali says he spotted them through the binoculars.
One of the Kurds posted a video to Facebook: a few missed shots, then a direct hit, a ball of flame, and cheers.
A fighter named Mohammed Sadiq Aza says it happens pretty regularly.
"If you just go down here, you will see the hand, the head of the ISIS," he says. "We kill him all the time here."
A doctor named Ahmed Hamid Saleh says that since the summer, a handful of Kurdish fighters at this mountaintop station have been killed, and some have also been wounded.
Anticipation For The Upcoming Battle
Farther down the mountain, just behind the front line, preparations for the planned assault on Mosul are intensifying.
Volunteer reservists — a mix of Kurds and Arabs from Mosul — are learning to march and shoot at a new training camp. They chant "ISIS, ISIS, we are coming, from every street to every house."
It's difficult to get any news from Mosul, but one military trainer says he manages to chat with his brother on Facebook every few days. His brother's family spends all day in the house. They say there are "no schools, no markets, nothing — bad life."
His brother urges him: "Come back to Mosul, and attack ISIS."
The trainer promises: "We will."
Training at a new camp near the front line, a mix of Arabs and Kurds prepare for an assault on Mosul in upcoming months. The men will wear balaclavas to conceal their identities while they fight, because they have family in Mosul and don't want to put their relatives at risk.
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Transcript
AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:
Sometime in April or May, the U.S. plans to help Iraqi troops retake the city of Mosul. That's according to statements yesterday from the U.S. military. The self-proclaimed Islamic State, or ISIS, captured Mosul last June. Iraqi Kurds will be key in the fight to free Mosul. They're the closest U.S. allies in Iraq and their forces hold the turf just north of the city. They're so close they can look down on the city's outskirts and watch ISIS operate. NPR's Ari Shapiro was with Kurdish fighters recently. And a warning note on this report - it contains graphic descriptions of violence.
(SOUNDBITE OF RADIO CONVERSATION)
UNIDENTIFIED MAN #1: (Foreign language spoken).
ARI SHAPIRO, BYLINE: Some guys are making plans to meet up over walkie-talkies. My interpreter translates.
(SOUNDBITE OF RADIO CONVERSATION)
UNIDENTIFIED MAN #2: (Foreign language spoken).
SHAPIRO: What are they saying?
UNIDENTIFIED INTERPRETER: He say, Mr. Abdullah, are you coming now to us? Let's - come to us to have a lunch.
SHAPIRO: We're listening to ISIS making lunch plans right now.
UNIDENTIFIED INTERPRETER: Yeah.
SHAPIRO: Kurdish fighters stand all day at the top of this mountain behind banks of sandbags, listening to their enemy in the city of Mosul down below. We can see the ISIS flags flying over the outskirts of the town. Sometimes the chatter is not so mundane.
(SOUNDBITE OF RADIO CONVERSATION)
UNIDENTIFIED MAN #3: (Foreign language spoken).
UNIDENTIFIED INTERPRETER: He say there is now the airplane. Did you hear the sound?
SHAPIRO: Yeah
UNIDENTIFIED INTERPRETER: Haidar - when he say Haidar he mean the airplane, like, it's like...
SHAPIRO: It's a code word. Haidar is the code word for the...
UNIDENTIFIED INTERPRETER: For the airplane.
SHAPIRO: They say Haidar is coming your way, and sure enough, we hear a low buzzing sound, though, there's no airstrike this time. The Kurds gave us permission to broadcast this information. They say sometimes at night they listen to the men down below order specific women to be sent to them by name. These women and girls have been taken captive from villages that ISIS conquered. It drives the Kurdish fighters crazy not to be able to do anything. Hussein Ali has been on top of this mountain since August and he's desperate to go fight.
HUSSEIN ALI: (Foreign language spoken).
UNIDENTIFIED INTERPRETER: He say yes, sure, and this is my village. I want to control my village. I don't want to stay here.
SHAPIRO: Last week, ISIS sent a few suicide bombers climbing up the hill. Hussein Ali says he spotted them through the binoculars. One of the fighters posted this video to Facebook. A few missed shots and then...
(SOUNDBITE OF EXPLOSION)
SHAPIRO: A direct hit, a ball of flame and cheers. A fighter named Mohammed Sadiq Aza says it happens pretty regularly.
MOHAMMED SADIQ AZA: (Foreign language spoken).
UNIDENTIFIED INTERPRETER: Yeah, he say if you just go down here you will see the hand and the head of the ISIS. We kill them all the time here.
UNIDENTIFIED PEOPLE: (Chanting in foreign language).
SHAPIRO: An assault on Mosul is still likely months away, but preparations are intensifying. Just behind the front line, a little ways down the mountain, this new training camp has volunteer reservists learning to march and shoot. They're both Kurds and Arabs from Mosul.
UNIDENTIFIED PEOPLE: (Chanting in foreign language).
SHAPIRO: They chant ISIS, ISIS we are coming, from every street to every house. As they march, they wear balaclavas covering their faces. That's because most of them have relatives in Mosul. They will fight with their identities concealed so ISIS doesn't kill their families. It's difficult to get any news from Mosul, but this military trainer says he manages to chat with his brother on Facebook every few days. His brother's family spends all day in the house.
UNIDENTIFIED MAN #4: No schools, no markets, nothing - bad life.
SHAPIRO: His brother urges come back to Mosul and attack ISIS. The trainer promises we will. Ari Shapiro, NPR News, Northern Iraq. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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