Iraqi forces invade major prison facility in western Mosul
Iraqi army forces in Mosul. File photo.
Ikhnews quoted a security source saying the forces stormed the Badush Prison, located at a town in northwestern Mosul. Earlier on Wednesday, Iraqi commanders said they had consummated a siege around the town after recapturing two last villages.
In 2014, the United Nations said the Badush Prison was a stage for a massacre that coincided with Islamic State’s takeover of Mosul. The group was believed to have stormed the facility, assorted prisoners based on their religious affiliations, and later executed at least 670 Shia inmates, an action which the U.N. said amounted to a crime against humanity.
The Iraqi government launched nearly two weeks ago a new offensive to retake western Mosul from IS fighters, having cleared the eastern region late January.
The Federal Police command said recently that more than 900 IS fighters died in encounters with security forces since the launch of operations at the west.
Military commanders from the Iraqi forces and the allied U.S.-led international military coalition have said IS resistance was remarkably weaker in the west compared to the eastern side. Government forces became closer Tuesday to a government complex in central Mosul, having retaken the city’s airport, a major military base and a vital bridge linking both sides of the city.