Special to WorldTribune.com

WASHINGTON — The U.S. military has been bracing for an Al Qaida campaign to close down Iraq’s largest airport.

U.S. military sources said they expect Al Qaida’s Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant to target Baghdad International Airport.

The sources said ISIL has determined that the airport marked a lifeline for U.S. and Iranian military aid to the Shi’ite-led government of Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki.

“Capture the airport and Baghdad becomes completely exposed,” a military
source said. “It’s clear this will be ISIL’s next step.”

So far, ISIL has been operating within 15 kilometers of central Baghdad. The Al Qaida movement has sent suicide bombers to soften up military and police outposts in and around the capital.

“This is a force that is sophisticated,” Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel
said. “It’s dynamic, it’s strong, it’s organized, it’s well-financed, it’s
competent.”

The Defense Department has designated Baghdad International Airport as
the sole entry point for the flow of military personnel and equipment to Al
Maliki. So far, the U.S. military has stationed a fleet of attack aircraft,
AH-64D attack helicopters and Predator-B combat unmanned aerial vehicles to
protect the U.S. embassy.

The U.S. military was said to be expecting an ISIL attack on the airport
by the end of July. A former U.S. security official said such an attack
could cut off U.S. supplies and endanger its growing military presence
in Iraq.

“There is genuine concern we would not be able to get our people out of
there,” former State Department counter-insurgency official Larry Johnson
told the Washington Times daily on July 9.

ISIL was said to have a range of options on how to capture or disable
the airport. The sources cited suicide bombers, rockets or artillery that
would target the facility’s Iraqi security force.

“ISIL is operating in a methodical and professional manner,” the
military source said. “This is clearly a realistic scenario.”

  AH-64D attack helicopters, Chuck Hagel, Iraq’s lifeline, Nouri Al Maliki, Predator B drone, U.S. military warns ISIS taking aim at Baghdad airport