Spokesperson of International Coalition revealed that the Iraqi forces managed to achieve notable advance in the Iraqi city of Mousl during the recent period, saying that they have only ten kilometers to control the whole city after months of fight against the extremist militias. He underlined the difficulty of the coming fight, saying that the remaining area will witness the most difficult clashes between the Iraqi forces on one hand and ISIS extremist group on the other hand.
Islamic State militants are controlling less than ten square kilometers of land in western Mosul, a spokesperson of the U.S.-led coalition backing the campaign against the group said Thursday. “Remaining ISIS in W. Mosul Iraq hold less than 10 sq. km. This will arguably be some of the toughest fighting the ISF will face,” Army Colonel Ryan Dillon, Spokesman for Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR), said on twitter, referring to Iraqi Security Forces sweeping through the last three districts around the Old City area which are still in IS grip.
Iraqi government troops regained control over eastern Mosul in January after three months of fighting. Operations for the western side of the city launched in mid February, and Iraqi generals say a few hundreds of IS fighters remain in the Old City as a last refuge. The densely populated and narrowly structured Old City was the place where IS supreme leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared the establishment of the group’s rule in Iraq in 2014. Iraqi forces began late April to advance towards the enclave from the northwest, having besieged it from the south for weeks to no avail.
In the same context, Badr Organization has announced storming the front defense line of Islamic State and liberating a border crossing with Syria. In a statement, Hadi al-Amiri, the leader of the organization, which fights under the broader al-Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization Units) said “the troops resumed their advance for the second day in row liberating the Iraqi-Syrian borders.”
Amiri added that the troops raided the front defense line, used to support militants in Syria, through besieging Jayer Ghelfas exit. PMUs, according to Amiri, “resume their advance toward Tal Sufouq border crossing, located west of Baaj. One of the villages was completely controlled.” Previously on Thursday, the troops cleared al-Khubra village from Islamic State and announced besieging Ghelfas village in south of Baaj city. Earlier this week, Hadi al-Amiri, head of Badr Organization, said PMUs reached to Iraqi-Syrian borders.
Last week, al-Hashd al-Shaabi troops resumed the second phase of operations, launched earlier this month, to liberate the remaining villages in the vicinity of Qairawan, a main Islamic State bastion which links between Tal Afar town and the Syrian borders, and Baaj, after the troops announced full liberation of Qairawan. PMUs, an alliance of more than 60 mostly Shia militias, are recognized by the government as a national force under the Prime Minister’s command.
In Diyala, Sixteen Iraqis were killed and wounded in Diyala on Thursday in separate attacks and bombings in the province, according to security sources. DPA quoted the sources saying that three Iraqi soldiers and an Islamic State fighter died during an attack by the extremist group on an army checkpoint in Hamreen Mountains, northeast of Baqubah.
Two civilians were also killed and six others were wounded when an explosive device went off in a commercial area in Bahzar, south of Baqubah. Sources also told the agency that gunmen attacked another police checkpoint in Hadid area early Thursday, killing a police captain and wounding another.
Violence and armed conflicts claimed the lives of 317 Iraqis and caused injuries to 403 others during the month of April, according to a monthly United Nations count. Islamic State, almost losing its main holdout in Mosul to a security operation running since October, has been escalating attacks at other provinces where it still has a presence.
Government and tribal forces have launched occasional operations over the past few months to clear border regions between Diyala and Salahuddin, killing dozens of militants. IS fighters have also responded with occasional attacks targeting troops, leaving several deaths.
Officials from towns still held by IS since 2014 have pressed the Iraqi government to hasten with security operations to retake those regions, but the Iraqi government is giving most attention to its battle in Mosul, Islamic State’s largest stronghold in Iraq.