Documents: IS militants demand repatriation citing funny illnesses
Documents seized from Islamic State offices show militants demanding repatriation citing sickness .
The documents, found by the army’s Counter-Terrorism Forces and shared by social network users, belong to the group’s so-called “Tarek ibn Ziad Battalion”, and show militants from Arab and European origins demanding to return to their home countries, stating cerebral pains, knee spasms, backaches and heel soreness.
Iraqi joint forces and allied militias are awaiting orders from the government in Baghdad to begin an offensive against IS strongholds in western Mosul. Operations backed by a US-led international military coalition have managed to retake the whole of the city’s eastern regions since October.
At least 3300 militants had been counted dead according to military officials since the beginning of operations. The extremist group has lost several senior leaders during the battles, and it has reportedly executed several fighters and demoted others over delinquency in the battlefield. Some incidents of infighting have also shed light on divisions within the group’s ranks.
Military officials predict a more difficult battle in western Mosul where 750.000 civilians are stranded there at group-held districts.