Baghdad---When the Iraqi government lost Ramadi last month, Abu Yasser's heart sank: the prospect of his own city, Mosul, shaking off jihadist rule had just faded farther into the distance.
Wresting back Mosul, Iraq's second city, was always seen as the top prize and climax of any fightback against the Islamic State group.
But Moslawis fear that being saved for last could mean their turn will never come.
"We were shocked when we heard the news that IS had occupied Ramadi," said Abu Yasser, who would not give his full name.
Even as the government vowed imminent operations to drive IS out of the western province of Anbar, the jihadists moved faster and seized its capital Ramadi in a devastating three-day blitz.
The way the security forces retreated was reminiscent of the debacle that saw IS-led forces roll through Mosul with barely a fight last June.
After taking back Tikrit in April, Baghdad turned to Anbar as a more achievable target than Mosul, so when security forces lost ground instead of advancing, residents were not encouraged.
"For Mosul, the political will to liberate it seems weak," said Abu Yasser, a 44-year-old shop owner.
Timeframes for the big push for Mosul were announced multiple times by Iraqi and US officials.
First it was due by the end of 2014, pushed back to April-May this year, then to the end of 2015. Now officials are being even more cautious and the operation seems off the table.
- Mosul off the table? -
"The whole Mosul operation is going to be postponed indefinitely," said analyst Ayham Kamel, director for the Middle East and North Africa at the Eurasia Group.
"Mosul is too big to be successful in the short term," he said.
Tikrit, which is roughly a tenth of Mosul's size, was empty by the time Baghdad moved to retake it in March.
Estimates vary but around half of Mosul's population of two million is thought to have remained.
Residents wishing to leave Mosul need to obtain a permit from IS and provide guarantees they will return, such as property deeds and the name of a relative.
Jihadist-led forces began their attack in Mosul on June 9 and thrust deep into Iraq's Sunni heartland.
When they took over the city on June 10, many residents were relieved to see the widely-reviled mostly-Shiite security forces run away and a halt to car bomb attacks.
A year on, however, the reality of IS rule has caught up with Moslawis, who have seen public beheadings, stonings and crucifixions and fear that any expression of discontent with their new masters will earn them the same fate.
AFP
