Revealed: A first look inside the tunnels has found that the jihadis even wired the underground chambers with electricity
ishtartv.com- dailymail.co.uk
By Tom
Wyke for MailOnline and Agencies,
4 March 2016
- Network
of underground tunnels discovered after Kurdish forces re-captured the town of
Sinjar in Iraq.
- Some
of the tunnels have been wired with electricity and are thought to be 30 feet
deep and just three feet wide.
- The
secret chambers allowed jihadis to freely move underground and evade
devastating coalition airstrikes.
A
deep network of underground tunnels have been uncovered in Iraq, revealing how
ISIS have been carefully maintaining escape routes for its fighters as they try
to avoid coalition airstrikes.
The
tunnels were discovered by Kurdish forces when the Peshmerga managed to re-take
the Yazidi majority town of Sinjar last December.
Burrowing
deep into the ground, some of the chambers are thought to be 30 feet deep,
allowing ISIS fighters to hide out and move freely out of the way of
airstrikes.
Although
70 tunnels have been uncovered, Kurdish and Iraqi forces remain concerned that
more secret layers may have been constructed in other parts of the town.
'There
is a tunnel under every alley, street and public building that remains intact,'
Wais Faiq, head of Sinjar town council told the International Business
Times.
Mr Faiq said that ISIS had 'dug so many to the extent that they completely
destroyed the infrastructure of Sinjar.'
The
tunnels remain in a precarious state with concerns remaining that parts of the
labyrinth of corridors may have been rigged with explosives.
The
discovery was made more surprising when soldiers investigating the tunnels found
that ISIS had even wired the chambers with electricity.
The news comes as the US-led coalition carried out further airstrikes against
ISIS forces in both Iraq and Syria.
United
States and its allies staged 21 strikes on Tuesday against ISIS, the coalition
leading the operations confirmed in a statement.
Fourteen
strikes in Iraq concentrated on the jihadi-held cities of Mosul and Fallujah.
The
coalition claimed to have hit two tactical units, an improvised explosive
device facility and three vehicles used by the militant group, among other
targets.
Other
strikes were conducted near Ramadi, Sinjar, Al Qaim, Albu Hayat, Bayji and Habbaniya,
the statement said.
In
Syria, seven strikes near four cities - Al Hawl, Ar Raqqa, Manbij and Mar'a -
hit numerous targets, including an ISIS headquarters, five tactical units and
two buildings.
ISIS
have been trying to regain ground close to the oil rich fields of Baiji and the
city of Tikrit, which was re-captured by government forces in March 2015.
Suicide
bombers from Morocco, Libya and Iraq were used in a triple raid on government
forces as well as paramilitary forces near Samarra.
Uncovered: The tunnels were discovered by Kurdish forces when the Peshmerga managed to re-take the Yazidi majority town of Sinjar
Devastating: Mr Faiq said that ISIS had 'dug so many to the extent that they completely destroyed the infrastructure of Sinjar'
Terrifying: Although 70 tunnels have been uncovered, Kurdish and Iraqi forces remain concerned that more secret layers may have been constructed in other parts of the town
Uncovered: A member of the Peshmerga forces inspects a tunnel used by ISIS militants in the town of Sinjar
Dangerous: Many of the tunnels have abandoned by the jihadis, who have rigged the chambers with explosives
Concerning: Many of the tunnels have been bored by the sappers through the floors and walls of houses
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