Iraqi joint forces managed to evacuate 30 families besieged in the areas of conflict in Mousl’s right bank in coincidence with clashes between Iraqi anti-extremism forces on one hand and ISIS extremist militants in the districts of the city. Meanwhile, two U.S senior officials stressed that the plan adopted by U.S President Donald Trump to eliminate the extremist group is similar to the plan of former President Barak Obama.
According to American officials, the plan aims to intensify the efforts aiming to eliminate the extremist group, as it is based on resuming the bombardment of the strongholds of the extremist group in the Iraqi city and increasing support for the Iraqi troops in the framework of the current military operations to liberate the city.
In the same context, the International Coalition resumed bombarding the sites of ISIS on Saturday. Sources revealed that the International Coalition’s fighter jets executed eight air raids targeting the strongholds of the extremist group in different places of the country, including Beji, Qaem, Mousl and Telaffar.
According to military sources, anti-extremism troops clashed with the extremist elements in the southern side of Mousl, as they managed to kill a number of extremist elements and injured others during the clashes.
Thousands of Iraqis surged out of western Mosul on Saturday during a lull in heavy fighting in districts around the densely populated Old City where Iraqi forces are facing fierce resistance from Islamic State militants.
Five months into the battle to take Islamic State’s last bastion in Iraq, government forces have cleared the east and half of western Mosul, and are now focused on controlling the Old City as well as the strategic al-Nuri Mosque.
As fighting has entered into the narrow alleyways and densely populated parts of the west, more residents are fleeing liberated areas where food and water are scarce, security fragile and where homes are often caught in shelling.
Leading member of Anti-Extremism troops Abdel Wahab Al Saady said that his troops resume the liberation of Mousl’s right bank, saying that the forces work currently to inspect liberated areas to cleanse them from the remnants of the extremist group. He added that they resume advance cautiously, stressing that they give the priority to protect the civilians existed in the areas controlled by the extremists.
A local source in Salahuddin Province informed that the Islamic State’s detachments official was killed, along with one of his aides, by an air strike, east of the province, Alsumaria News reported on Saturday.
The source said that the Islamic State’s detachments official of Mutaibija, also known as Abu al- Qaqaa, was killed, along with one of his aides, by an air strike that targeted his vehicle, east of Salahuddin.
Abu al-Qaqaa is one of the Islamic State leaders in Wilayat Salahuddin, and was based in Hawija, before moving to al-Mutaibija to handle the detachments file, the source added on condition of anonymity.
The area of Mutaibija, located on the borders between Diyala and Salahuddin, is one of the most unstable areas that includes many of the Islamic State sleeper cells.