Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Baghdad

UPDATED: Army forces recapture four areas in western Mosul from IS

 UPDATED: Army forces recapture four areas in western Mosul from IS

Iraqi soldiers gather to go battle against Islamic State militants south of Mosul , Iraq, June 15, 2016. REUTERS/Stringer

Iraqi soldiers gather to go battle against Islamic State militants south of Mosul , Iraq, June 15, 2016. REUTERS/Stringer
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Iraqi army forces took over four areas on Sunday as troops push deeper into western Mosul against Islamic State militants, according to military media.

The army’s elite Counter-Terrorism Forces took over the Orouba district and the “industrial zone” in western Mosul, according to the Defense Ministry’s War Media Cell. It added that troops also retook Wadi al-Ein and Rajm al-Hadid districts in the south.

The progress comes hours after a spokesperson of the Iraqi Federal Police, a component of the joint security forces fighting IS in Mosul, said security forces halted offensives in the city’s western area after the death of dozens of civilians in airstrikes admitted by the U.S.-led coalition backing the Iraqi forces’ campaign.

The U.S. military admitted on Saturday that airstrikes by the international military coalition it leads in Iraq against IS had left dozens of civilian casualties in western Mosul on March 17th. More recent strikes also left dozens others dead, with the coalition again suspected of carrying out the assaults.

Iraqi government forces have been struggling to recapture central Mosul’s Old City, a vital target which commanders believe would be decisive in realizing victory against Islamic State in Mosul.

Security forces recaptured eastern Mosul in January, and launched a fresh assault on the west mid February. Iraqi and coalition generals had said the battles in the west were much more difficult due to the density of residential areas and the high number of civilians who the commanders believe are used as human shields by IS members.

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