CCTV9英语新闻：Iraq announces operation to liberate Anbar province

Iraq's Shi'ite paramilitary volunteer force says it's leading the campaign to drive the Islamic State from Anbar Province. But the operation's codename will do nothing to ease the fears of the area's Sunni population. Dubbed "Labaik ya Hussein" -- it's a reference to a revered Shi'ite imam. 

 

The Shi'ite militia fighters have often performed better on the battlefield than Iraq's own army. Many of the Shia volunteers were trained by neighboring Iran. But many Sunni residents in Anbar actually fear the Shi'ite fighters just as much as they do the Islamic State.... fears that go a long way back into Iraq's sectarian history. 

 

However, the Baghdad government has managed to persuade some Sunni tribal leaders to accept help from the Shi'ite fighters.