UPDATED: Army invades Shurta district in eastern Mosul
Federal Police Captain Raed Shaker Jawdat. Archival photo.
Nineveh (IraqiNews.com) The Iraqi army’s Counter-Terrorism Forces invaded on Monday al-Shurta district in eastern Mosul, pushing closer towards victory in operations against Islamic State militants in that region.
The Defense Ministry’s War Media Cell said the forces invaded the district backed by army tanks.
The recapturing of Mosul, Islamic State’s last stronghold in Iraq, has become “a matter of time”, Iraq’s Federal Police commander, Raed Shaker Jawdat, said earlier.
Islamic State has lost control over its fighters, and is sustaining defeats everywhere in the city, Jawdat was quoted by Sputnik News as saying.
On Sunday, Iraq’s military statements said government joint forces had retaken 80 districts in the city’s eastern section, accounting for 90 percent of neighborhoods at that region.
The recent recapture of Mosul University campus, an outstanding Islamic State bastion, had made a remarkable impetus to the advancement of the forces. The university overlooks some of the remaining districts on the targets list.
An Iraqi army lieutenant, Haider al-Sedi, was quoted by Anadolu Agency as saying that Iraqi forces became close to announcing the recapture of the whole eastern region of the city. He added that the remaining districts within IS control in that region were within the forces’ firing reach, and only contain a few militants after many had fled.
Iraqi forces, backed by US-led advisors and fighter jets, as well as popular militias, launched operations to retake Mosul last October. The conflict has forced nearly 178.000 civilians to flee homes.