ISIS ATTACKS – AT 9:32 A.M. ET:  ISIS has launched a major attack in Iraq.  We've been told previously that anti-ISIS forces have been advancing in Iraq.  Once again, the enemy surprises us, and even Barack Obama might have to show some interest.  From CNN:   

Amman, Jordan (CNN)ISIS militants have launched an attack on the oil-producing northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk.

There had been recent speculation that ISIS might attack Kirkuk to force Kurdish troops to divert their efforts away from Mosul, ISIS's stronghold in Iraq, about 100 miles to the northwest.

Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga fighters have moved in around the outskirts of Mosul recently, backed by airstrikes by the U.S.-led international coalition against ISIS, forcing the Sunni extremist group onto the defensive.

ISIS has been facing off with the Peshmerga -- armed fighters who protect Iraqi Kurdistan -- to the west of Kirkuk for months.

The extremist group has previously held areas on the outskirts of Kirkuk but not the central city.

On Friday, however, ISIS militants took over Maktab Khalid, an area about 12 miles southwest of the city, after heavy clashes with Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga troops.

Among those killed was Brig. Gen. Shirko Fateh, the highest-ranking operational commander of the Peshmerga brigade located in Kirkuk.

Peshmerga fighters continued to battle, attempting to retake the area.

COMMENT:  We are being warned by real experts that ISIS is strong and resourceful, and should not be dismissed because it suffers temporary setbacks.  It still controls large areas of Iraq and Syria, and is seeking to expand throughout the Mideast, just as the United States is seeking to reduce our presence in the region.

January 30, 2015