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IS member injured, wife killed in explosion western Mosul

 IS member injured, wife killed in explosion western Mosul

Aftermath of Baghdad car bomb explosion. File photo.

Aftermath of Baghdad car bomb explosion. File photo.
Aftermath of Baghdad car bomb explosion. File photo.
Nineveh (IraqiNews.com) A member of the Islamic State’s police service was injured, while his wife was killed as a bomb exploded under their vehicle in Tal Afar town, a strategic IS stronghold in northwestern Mosul, a local source in Nineveh province said on Monday.

Speaking to Alsumaria News, the source said “the Islamic Police official of IS in Tal Afar was critically wounded, while his wife was killed as a bomb planted under his vehicle exploded in the southern suburb of the town.

“The operations that target IS leaders are mainly motivated by competition among leaders on positions and profits due to the weakening centralism of the group in the wake of Mosul liberation,” the source, who preferred anonymity, said.

On Sunday, a source declared the killing of IS explosive expert in Tal Afar, along with four of his assistants, while attempting to booby-trap a residential building there.

Pro-government militias, al-Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization Units) forces launch fierce battles to liberate Tal Afar from IS. The Shi’ite militias began to close in on Tal Afar late last year, after the offensive was launched, before linking up with Kurdish Peshmerga fighters to surround the IS fighters.

Iraqi troops supported by airstrikes from army and the US-led coalition resume military operations to free western Mosul.

Mosul is the Islamic State’s last stronghold in Iraq. Eastern Mosul and about half of the west were recaptured from IS in January, after a US-backed offensive was launched in October. A new offensive started in February to retake the west. The government troops have recently pushed deeper into the Old City, a densely-populated and -structured area which military officials view as central to the desired victory over IS militants.

Battles in the west are believed to be 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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