Iraq: Displaced families return to liberated Tikrit after IS defeat

Iraqi refugees started to return to Tikrit, Tuesday, after security forces, backed by Shiite militias, liberated the northern Iraqi city from Islamic State militants (IS, formally ISIS/ISIL). The displaced residents of Tikrit arrived back in their country flanked by armed men, many waving the Iraqi flag, throwing up the peace sign, and firing their guns in the air. Some 200 families reportedly returned to the city on Monday, with a further 1,000 families expected to arrive by Thursday. Tikrit was seized by IS forces in the summer 2014 at the same time as Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city. Tikrit was declared liberated from IS forces by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on March 31, 2015.