Ministry: Airstrikes, troops kill 67 IS fighters west of Mosul

Nineveh (IraqiNews.com) Airstrikes by Iraqi fighter jets and offensives by infatry divisions killed 67 Islamic State militants west of Mosul on Monday, according to the Ministry of Defense.

Airstrikes targeted IS locations in Al-Mazraa, Tal al-Banat and Toula Bash in Tal Afar and Sinjar, according to the ministry. The strike killed 47 militants and also destroyed five booby-trapped vehicles belonging to the group.

Infantry divisions also killed 20 IS members in Tal Afar, according the ministry.

Iraqi government troops launched a major offensive in February to retake western Mosul from Islamic State militants. The troops recaptured the eastern side of IS’s largest stronghold in Iraq in January.

Earlier on Monday, the Iraqi Air Force said in a statement it killed 2200 Islamic State fighters since operations launched to retake western Mosul.

Iraqi government forces have made remarkable victories over IS in western Mosul, retaking major government facilities, Mosul’s Airport and a major military camp. They are currently setting eyes on recapturing the Old City, which hosts the Grand Nuri Mosque where IS supreme leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared the establishment of an Islamic Caliphate in Iraq.

Iraqi security commanders have claimed retaking a half of the western side of the city.