Islamic State leader arrested in poor districts of Mosul: Deputy Commander
An Iraqi Special Forces soldier stands in position in an alley near the frontline as Iraqi forces continue their advance against Islamic State militants in the Old City of Mosul, Iraq, Friday, July 7, 2017. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
Speaking to Alghad Press on Sunday, Col. Ahmed Selim, deputy commander of Nineveh Operations said “information received by the command over presence of Islamic State members in Sumar and eastern Yarimja districts, southeast of Mosul, which were invaded. The militants were arrested and referred to investigations.”
“The regions in southeastern Mosul is a fertile place for terrorism growth. Thus we follow on the situation there and urge residents to cooperate with troops to impose security,” he added.
“The militant group is trying to remain there at the poor regions, which have been a stronghold for it for long time,” he said.
It was from the Grand Nuri al-Kabir mosque when The group’s supreme leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi made his first appearance in a video him making the sermon proclaiming the establishment of an Islamist “caliphate” in the Old City’s Grand Nuri Mosque in June 2014.
On July 10, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared victory over Islamic State militants who had held the second largest Iraqi city since 2014. More than 25,000 militants were killed throughout the campaign.
A government campaign, backed by PMFs and a U.S.-led international coalition, has been fighting the Islamic State group, which declared a self-styled “caliphate” from Mosul in June 2014.
The war against IS has displaced nearly five million people, with tens of thousands of civilians and militants killed since the launch of the offensives to recapture occupied cities.