Peshmerga General Sirwan Barzani, meanwhile, said he is unsure if the 2016 deadline will be reached, due to conflicting statements he hears coming from both the Iraqi government and the media in general. “It depends on the plans,” he told Rudaw English. “We don’t know the final plans and it depends on the forces involved. It’s changed from the Iraqi side like 45 times. It’s not clear yet because we hear different things from the media every day. “Sometimes Prime Minister Abadi says it’ll be Shiite militias or someone else liberating Mosul. We need a clear plan,” Barzani said. Commenting on whether Mosul’s liberation could take place this year, he said: “I think it is possible.”
But it doesn't appear to be possible without a major commitment by the Kurds, and if there is no such commitment, it is not possible this year. Given the track record of the Iraqi Army, the terrain they would have to traverse, and the distance they would have to cover, if the Iraqi Army has to retake the city on its own, it will not be in a World War II-style rapid thrust; it will be a World War I-style slog.
According to this article, lots of people on site and in the know are skeptical that the city will be taken this year.
http://rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iraq/080920164
Quote:
Peshmerga General Sirwan Barzani, meanwhile, said he is unsure if the 2016 deadline will be reached, due to conflicting statements he hears coming from both the Iraqi government and the media in general. “It depends on the plans,” he told Rudaw English. “We don’t know the final plans and it depends on the forces involved. It’s changed from the Iraqi side like 45 times. It’s not clear yet because we hear different things from the media every day. “Sometimes Prime Minister Abadi says it’ll be Shiite militias or someone else liberating Mosul. We need a clear plan,” Barzani said. Commenting on whether Mosul’s liberation could take place this year, he said: “I think it is possible.”
But it doesn't appear to be possible without a major commitment by the Kurds, and if there is no such commitment, it is not possible this year. Given the track record of the Iraqi Army, the terrain they would have to traverse, and the distance they would have to cover, if the Iraqi Army has to retake the city on its own, it will not be in a World War II-style rapid thrust; it will be a World War I-style slog.