BAGHDAD // ISIL militants have set fire to oil wells northeast of Tikrit in a bid to obstruct the onslaught of Shiite militia fighters and Iraqi soldiers trying to drive them out.
A military source said the extremists ignited the fire at the Ajil oilfield to shield themselves from attack by Iraqi military helicopters.
The offensive is the biggest Iraqi forces have yet mounted against ISIL, which has declared a so-called Islamic caliphate on captured territory in Iraq and Syria.
Black smoke could be seen rising from Ajil oilfield since Wednesday afternoon.
Control of oilfields has played an important part in funding ISIL, even if it lacks the technical expertise to run them at full capacity.
Before the militants took over Ajil last June, the field produced 25,000 barrels per day of crude that were shipped to the Kirkuk refinery to the north-east, as well as 150 million cubic feet of gas per day piped to the government-controlled Kirkuk power station.
An engineer at the site, about 35 km northeast of Tikrit, said in July that ISIL fighters were pumping lower volumes of oil from Ajil, fearing that their primitive extraction techniques could ignite the gas.
Bombing in August damaged the Ajil field’s control room, according to the US Energy Information Administration.
The outcome of the battle for Tikrit, the home town of executed Sunni president Saddam Hussein, will determine whether and how fast the Iraqi forces can advance further north and attempt to win back Mosul, the biggest city under ISIL rule.
The army, backed by Shiite militia and Kurdish peshmerga fighters, has yet to reconquer and secure any city held by ISIL, despite seven months of airstrikes by a US-led coalition, as well as weapons supplies and strategic support from neighbouring Iran.
Tehran, not Washington, has been the key player in the current offensive. Iranian Revolutionary Guard general Qassem Suleimani has been seen directing operations on the eastern flank, and Iranian-backed militia fighters have led much of the operation.
Soldiers and militia are also advancing along the Tigris river from the north and south of Tikrit, preparing for a joint offensive which is expected in coming days.
They are likely to attack first the towns of Al Dour and Al Alam to the south and north of Tikrit, but their approach has been slowed by roadside bombs, snipers and suicide bomb attacks.
An ISIL suicide bomber drove an explosives-laden tanker on Wednesday night into a camp on the eastern edge of Al Dour, killing a leader of the Iranian-backed Asaib Ahl Al Haq, Madi Al Kinani and four others, a military source said.
Al Ahd, the militia’s television channel, confirmed Kinani’s death. He was buried in the Shiite holy city of Najaf, south of the capital Baghdad.
A police source in Salahuddin province, where Tikrit is located, said an eight-vehicle convoy of ISIL insurgents attacked Iraqi forces at dawn on Thursday in Al Muaibidi, east of Al Alam. The source said the army returned fire, killing four militants and burning two of their cars.
An online video published on Thursday purported to show ISIL militants in Tikrit and Al Alam, taunting their attackers.
In Baghdad, 10 people were killed on Thursday in a series of bomb attacks and mortar fire.
The deadliest incidents were in the southeastern, Sunni neighbourhood of Nahrawan where three people were killed by a bomb in a market, and the northern district of Rashidiya where three soldiers were killed by two roadside bombs.
* Reuters
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Expo details
Expo 2020 Dubai will be the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia
The world fair will run for six months from October 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021.
It is expected to attract 25 million visits
Some 70 per cent visitors are projected to come from outside the UAE, the largest proportion of international visitors in the 167-year history of World Expos.
More than 30,000 volunteers are required for Expo 2020
The site covers a total of 4.38 sqkm, including a 2 sqkm gated area
It is located adjacent to Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai South
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
11 cabbie-recommended restaurants and dishes to try in Abu Dhabi
Iqbal Restaurant behind Wendy’s on Hamdan Street for the chicken karahi (Dh14)
Pathemari in Navy Gate for prawn biryani (from Dh12 to Dh35)
Abu Al Nasar near Abu Dhabi Mall, for biryani (from Dh12 to Dh20)
Bonna Annee at Navy Gate for Ethiopian food (the Bonna Annee special costs Dh42 and comes with a mix of six house stews – key wet, minchet abesh, kekel, meser be sega, tibs fir fir and shiro).
Al Habasha in Tanker Mai for Ethiopian food (tibs, a hearty stew with meat, is a popular dish; here it costs Dh36.75 for lamb and beef versions)
Himalayan Restaurant in Mussaffa for Nepalese (the momos and chowmein noodles are best-selling items, and go for between Dh14 and Dh20)
Makalu in Mussaffa for Nepalese (get the chicken curry or chicken fry for Dh11)
Al Shaheen Cafeteria near Guardian Towers for a quick morning bite, especially the egg sandwich in paratha (Dh3.50)
Pinky Food Restaurant in Tanker Mai for tilapia
Tasty Zone for Nepalese-style noodles (Dh15)
Ibrahimi for Pakistani food (a quarter chicken tikka with roti costs Dh16)
The biog
Hometown: Cairo
Age: 37
Favourite TV series: The Handmaid’s Tale, Black Mirror
Favourite anime series: Death Note, One Piece and Hellsing
Favourite book: Designing Brand Identity, Fifth Edition
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
