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43 Islamic State members killed in coalition strikes in western Mosul

 43 Islamic State members killed in coalition strikes in western Mosul

Smoke rises from clashes during a battle between Iraqi forces and Islamic State militants in the city of Mosul, Iraq, March 16, 2017. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal

Smoke rises from clashes during a battle between Iraqi forces and Islamic State militants in the city of Mosul, Iraq, March 16, 2017. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Airstrikes by the U.S.-led international military coalition against the Islamic State killed 43 group members in western Mosul on Monday, according to a police officer.

Colonel Emad al-Bayati told BasNews that coalition fighter jets targeted gatherings of IS members in Tamuz district in western Mosul, killing 43 militants and destroying medical and weapons caches belonging to the group.

17 Tamuz (July 17th) district in western Mosul (google maps)

Iraqi government forces, backed by paramilitary troops and a U.S.-led coalition, recaptured eastern Mosul from IS in January after three months of fighting, and launched another offensive mid February to retake the western region.

Troops have been struggling to fully retake central Mosul’s Old City, a densely-populated and structured area which military generals view as vital for victory over IS in that region. They specifically eye the area’s Grand Nuri Mosque where IS supreme leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi proclaimed the group’s takeover of Iraq in 2014.

Maj. Gen. Najm al-Jubouri, head of the Joint Operations Command’s Mosul operations, said in statements last week that his troops became in control over 90 percent of the “western axis”, and continue to advance in central Mosul.

Several foreign senior leaders from the group have been killed in airstrikes and ground offensives in western Mosul over the past week.

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