Special to WorldTribune.com

LONDON — Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has established an operational presence on the outskirts of Iraq’s capital.

Security sources said ISIL has been quietly moving cells near Shi’ite neighborhoods of Baghdad. They said ISIL suicide bombers were directed to conduct mass-casualty attacks on mosques, schools and markets in an attempt to spark a Shi’ite flight.

“They are secretly moving terrorist squads near Shi’ite areas so they can sustain a bombing campaign in much of Baghdad,” a source said.

The sources said ISIL was aided by former members of the ousted Saddam Hussein regime, including military and security officers. They said the ex-officers were helping ISIL transport fighters and explosives through Baghdad’s sewers and tunnels, many of them built more than 20 years ago as escape routes by Saddam aides.

“These tunnels start in the Anbar province and connect to Baghdad, so you don’t know where they [ISIL] are or how close they are to their target,” the source said. “They could never have achieved this without the help of the Saddam people.”

The sources said ISIL has been detected on the outskirts of both the northern and southern part of Baghdad. They expressed concern over mass-casualty strikes from so-called tunnel bombs underneath Shi’ite
neighborhoods. A key target was identified as Sadr City, home to Iranian-sponsored Shi’ite militias, including Mahdi Army.

A major stronghold of ISIL was identified as Jurf Al Sakhar, located in the Euphrates Valley where Sunni and Shi’ite communities meet. The sources said ISIL, with at least 500 fighters in Jurf, was believed to be using a network of tunnels and canals covered by rich vegetation.

In response, Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki has ordered the destruction of thousands of acres of farmland to help uncover the ISIL tunnel network.

The sources said the Iraqi military has been carpet-bombing the Euphrates Valley and intensifying helicopter surveillance missions.
Shi’ites around Baghdad have expressed concern over ISIL warnings of massacres. ISIL leaflets that vow beheadings have appeared in Shi’ite towns and hundreds already fled their homes.

ISIL has also recruited Sunni tribes to advance toward Baghdad. The sources said the tribes in the Anbar province were being paid to help overthrow the Shi’ite-led government, accused of discriminating against Sunnis over the last decade.

“ISIL is buying the services of thousands of tribal fighters, many of them waiting to massacre Shi’ites,” another source said.

  aided by ex-Saddam security forces, Anbar province, ISIL establishing cells in Baghdad, Mahdi Army, Sadr City