Friday, March 29, 2024

Baghdad

Iraqi jets bomb Islamic State locations in western Mosul

 Iraqi jets bomb Islamic State locations in western Mosul

Iraqi Sukhoi fighter jets. File photo.

Iraqi Sukhoi fighter jets. Archival photo.
Nineveh (Iraqi News) Iraqi fighter jets bombarded a number of neighborhoods held by Islamic State militants in western Mosul on Saturday, two days after government forces became a few districts away from totally recapturing the eastern section.

A source at Nineveh operations told London-based The New Arab newspaper that the airstrikes also killed a number of militants who were escaping the eastern regions to the west on nine boats via the Tigris River.

The source said battles between government forces and the extremist group still continue at the districts of Rashidiya, Baisan and al-Qawsiyat in the northeast, which he said were the last Islamic State hideouts in the east.

On Wednesday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said the basic military plan for Mosul’s liberation had been completed “in most combat axes” with the recapture of central Mosul, adding that operations continue to liberate the Ghabat and Presidential Palaces area besides “a few other regions” in the north of the city.

Commanders from the Iraqi army’s elite Counter-Terrorism Forces said in a press conference on the same day they had retaken all districts assigned to them in eastern Mosul, killing 3300 militants since operations launched in October 2016.

After getting finished with eastern Mosul, Iraqi generals plan to advance to the western region of the city beyond the Tigris River, where Islamic State still predominates a majority of territory.

The campaign to retake Mosul has entered its third month, with Iraqi government forces backed by U.S.-led international coalition fighter jets as well as popular militias.

Leave a Reply