Mosul update

[tigergorzow]

Iraqi forces enter New Mosul District for first time in 2.5 years

By

Leith Fadel

-

12/03/2017

BEIRUT, LEBANON (10:00) – The Iraqi Army, alongside the Federal Police, continued their large-scale offensive inside western Mosul on Sunday morning, targeting the Islamic State’s (ISIS) defenses at the New Mosul District.

According to local activists, the Iraqi Armed Forces have entered the New Mosul District today after intense fighting with the Islamic State terror organization.

The Iraqi Armed Forces attacked the New Mosul District this morning from two different axes, killing and wounding several Islamic State terrorists amid this latest advance.

This assault by the Iraqi Armed Forces comes at the same time the commander of the Mosul operations announced that 1/3 of the provincial capital’s western sector has been liberated.

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/iraqi-forces-enter-new-mosul-district-first-time-2-5-years/

[tigergorzow]

Iraqi authorities find new mass grave of Camp Speicher victims in Tikrit

 

by Loaa Adel Mar 12, 2017, 4:50 pm

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Representational photo.

 

Salahuddin (IraqiNews.com) Head of Forensic Department Zayd Ali announced on Sunday discovering a new mass grave containing remains of Camp Speicher victims, in the Presidential Palaces area in Tikrit, while pointed out that the exhumation of the remains is ongoing.

Ali said in a press statement, “Officials of the Forensic Medicine Department, Ministry of Health, Martyrs Organization and civil society organizations discovered a new mass grave containing remains of Camp Speicher victims, in the Presidential Palaces area in Tikrit.”

“The concerned authorities continue the exhumation process, but the number of the remains was not identified yet,” Ali explained.

“The specialized teams continue searching for more mass graves and remains of Camp Speicher victims in the area of the Presidential Palaces, and nearby places,” Ali further added.

The massacre occurred at Speicher air base in Tikrit in 12 June 2014, when Islamic State militants executed more than 1700 Shia students at the air base. The victims were either shot at or beheaded before their corpses were dumped into the Tigris River.

http://www.iraqinews.com/iraq-war/iraqi-authorities-find-new-mass-grave-camp-speicher-victims-tikrit/

[tigergorzow]

Federal Police recaptures Souk al-Arbaa and Remah Square in central Mosul

 

by Loaa Adel Mar 12, 2017, 8:28 pm

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Federal Police forces. File photo.

 

Nineveh (IraqiNews.com) Iraqi Federal Police announced on Sunday liberating Souk al-Arbaa and al-Remah Square in Bab al-Toub, in central Mosul.

Federal Police Chief, Lieutenant General Raed Shaker Jawdat, said in a press statement, “Troops of the Federal Police liberated Souk al-Arbaa and al-Remah Square in Bab al-Toub, in central Mosul.”

Earlier today, the Defense Ministry’s War Media Cell announced that elite Counter-Terrorism Forces also took over al-Aghawat district, near Mosul’s Old City.

Nineveh Province is witnessing extensive military operations, after Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced launching an offensive to liberate the western side of the city of Mosul, in addition to capturing the last stronghold of the Islamic State in the city.

http://www.iraqinews.com/iraq-war/federal-police-recapture-souk-al-arbaa-remah-square-central-mosul/

[tigergorzow]

Security forces seize weapons and equipment cache in Hīt

 

by Loaa Adel Mar 12, 2017, 5:34 pm

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Weapons found in a cache in Hit District.

 

Anbar (IraqiNews.com) Military Intelligence Directorate announced on Sunday, finding a cache containing weapons, explosives and equipment in Hīt District in Anbar.

The directorate said in a press statement, “Security forces discovered a cache containing equipment, weapons, explosive belts, sniper gears, mortar shells and C4 explosives, in al-Bakr neighborhood in Hīt District.”

“The cache was used by the sleeper cells of the Islamic State group, to provide the needed equipment and weapons to attack security forces and innocent civilians,” the statement added.

 

 

 

 

http://www.iraqinews.com/iraq-war/forces-seize-weapons-equipment-hit/

[tigergorzow]

Iraqi forces control over a third of western Mosul: senior officer

 

by Mohamed Mostafa Mar 12, 2017, 11:41 am

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Iraqi forces in western Mosul.

 

Nineveh (IraqiNews.com) Iraqi government forces have become in control over at least a third of western Mosul since operations targeting Islamic State militants in that region launched in February, according to a senior Iraqi officer.

Maan al-Saadi, commander of the second division of the elite Counter-Terrorism Force, was quoted by AFP saying Iraqi forces had become in control over more than a third of the region, with troops proceeding to liberate the rest of districts in that section.

Earlier on Sunday, Iraqi troops continued advances in western Mosul, storming two more neighborhoods near the Old City.

The defense ministry’s War Media Cell said the army’s elite Counter-Terrorism Forces stormed the districts of al-Oghwat and Mosul al-Jadidah.

Iraqi government forces took over eastern Mosul in January after three months of fighting with IS, and have entered a third week of operations to clear the western region from militants. The troops have become closer to the central Mosul’s Old City, having recaptured major government facilities, a military base and the city’s airport.

Military leaders from the Iraqi side and the allied U.S.-led coalition had foreseen a tougher battle in western Mosul due to the region’s dense residential areas and the high number of population estimated by 750.000.

The conflict in Mosul has displaced above 250.000 people since operations launched in October 2016. Refugees from western Mosul alone reached 89.000 on Saturday.

http://www.iraqinews.com/features/iraqi-forces-control-third-western-mosul-senior-officer/

[tigergorzow]

PMUs kill 3 IS militants, arrest 2 linked to prison massacre in western Mosul

 

by Mohamed Mostafa Mar 12, 2017, 12:08 pm

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Pro-Iraqi government paramilitary forces, al-Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization Units)

 

Nineveh (IraqiNews.com) Pro-Iraqi government paramilitary forces said Sunday they killed three Islamic State militants and arrested two others at their area of operations in western Mosul.

Al-Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization Units) said through their media that the force launched rockets and killed three IS militants who were moving within their area of operations in western Mosul. The statement did not specify the exact location of the strike.

The outlet also on Sunday said the force arrested two Islamic State members suspected of standing behind a massacre that left hundreds of prisoners dead at a western Mosul prison facility.
Al-Hashd reported on Saturday its fighters had arrested 87 in relation to the massacre at Badush Prison.

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 PMUs said Saturday they ran into a mass grave in Badush believed to contain the relics of 500 victims from the massacre.

Iraqi forces have recently recaptured several villages around Badush. The government launched an offensive in February to clear western Mosul frol IS. The eastern region was retaken in January.

http://www.iraqinews.com/features/pmus-kill-3-militants-arrest-2-linked-prison-massacre-western-mosul/

[tigergorzow]

Refugees from western Mosul closer to 100.000: ministry

 

by Mohamed Mostafa Mar 12, 2017, 2:06 pm

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Refugees from Mosul.

 

Nineveh (IraqiNews.com) Refugees fleeing the western side of Mosul since February have reached nearly 100.000 as battles continue between Islamic State militants and Iraqi government troops seeking to recapture the region, the Iraqi government said Sunday.

Migration and Displacement Minister Jassem al-Jaff said the new surge came as the ministry’s teams received 10607 more civilians fleeing western Mosul, driving the total so far to 99852.

Those were admitted to camps in southern Mosul and Tikrit, according to the minister.

The United Nations and Iraqi refugee bodies have warned that battles in western Mosul could displace at least 250.000 out of 750.000 estimated to be trapped under IS control in western Mosul. Upon the launch of operations to recapture eastern Mosul last October, the United Nations predicted 1.5 million refugees.

ِA spokesperson of the Iraqi government said earlier this month that over four million people had been displaced inside Iraq since Islamic State took over large areas of Iraq in 2014, adding that the government spent 300 billion dinars since then to cater for refugees.

Islamic State has targeted civilians trying to escape areas under its control in Iraq, and many were killed by landmines planted by the group upon fleeing. The United Nations has also reported of severe food and medical stuff shortages affecting civilians in western Mosul. Iraqi security officials have, meanwhile, detected instances where IS militants tried to flee battles in the middle of refugee groups.

http://www.iraqinews.com/features/refugees-western-mosul-closer-100-000-ministry/

[tigergorzow]

Iraqi forces recapture central Mosul district: military media

 

by Mohamed Mostafa Mar 12, 2017, 2:33 pm

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A member of Iraqi security forces takes his position during a battle with Islamic State fighters, in western Mosul, Iraq February 26, 2017. REUTERS/Alaa Al-Marjani

 

Nineveh (IraqiNews.com) Iraqi government troops recaptured a district in central Mosul on Sunday, hours after storming it and engaging in fights with Islamic State militants.

The Defense Ministry’s War Media Cell said Counter-Terrorism Forces took over al-Aghawat district, near Mosul’s Old City, a vital target for Iraqi forces battling the extremist group in Mosul in western Mosul since mid February.

Iraqi government forces took over eastern Mosul in January after three months of fighting with IS, and have entered a third week of operations to clear the western region from militants. The troops have become closer to the central Mosul’s Old City, having recaptured major government facilities, a military base and the city’s airport.

Earlier on Sunday, Maan al-Saadi, a senior CTF commander, told AFP that government forces had become in control over at least 30 percent of the western side of the city.

Military leaders from the Iraqi side and the allied U.S.-led coalition had foreseen a tougher battle in western Mosul due to the region’s dense residential areas and the high number of population estimated by 750.000.

The conflict in Mosul has displaced above 250.000 people since operations launched in October 2016. Refugees from western Mosul alone reached more than 99.000 on Sunday.

http://www.iraqinews.com/iraq-war/iraqi-forces-recapture-central-mosul-district-military-media/

[tigergorzow]

Sun Mar 12, 2017 | 10:09am EDT

Iraqi general says 30 percent of west Mosul recaptured from Islamic State (Video in link)

 

By John Davison | MOSUL, Iraq

MOSUL, Iraq Iraqi forces have retaken around 30 percent of west Mosul from Islamic State militants, a commander of the elite Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) said on Sunday, as soldiers pushed further into the jihadists' territory.

Federal police and Rapid Response units said they had entered the Bab al-Tob area of the Old City, where the fight is expected to be toughest due to narrow alleyways through which armoured vehicles cannot pass.

The militants are vastly outnumbered and outgunned by Iraqi forces backed by a U.S.-led coalition and are defending their last major stronghold in Iraq using suicide car bombs, snipers and mortars.

As many as 600,000 civilians are trapped with the militants inside the city which Iraqi forces have effectively sealed off from the remaining territory that Islamic State controls in Syria and Iraq.

CTS troops stormed the al-Jadida and al-Aghawat districts on Sunday, Major General Maan al-Saadi told reporters in Mosul, saying the militants were showing signs of weakness despite initial "fierce" resistance.

“The enemy has lost its fighting power and its resolve has weakened. It has begun to lose command and control,” he said, adding that around 17 out of 40 western districts had been retaken

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-iraq-mosul-idUSKBN16J0F2

[tigergorzow]

US-led coalition killed 180 ISIS leaders - Official

March 12 2017 08:53 PM

ISIS terrorists

The remaining western Mosul neighborhoods held by ISIS terrorist group are now completely surrounded and ISIS has lost more than 60 percent of the territory the militants once held in Iraq, AP quoted a senior coalition official as saying on Sunday.
 

"ISIS is trapped," Brett McGurk, the special presidential envoy for the global coalition against ISIS, said. He told reporters the Iraqi army had taken control of the last road leading out of Mosul late Saturday night.

Iraqi forces are currently fighting ISIS in western Mosul after declaring the city's east "fully liberated" in January. The operation to retake Mosul was launched in October more than two years after the extremists took control of Iraq's second largest city.

"Mosul's liberation is increasingly in sight albeit with increasingly difficult fighting ahead," McGurk said, adding that Iraqi forces are retaking "some of the most difficult ground that we knew would have to be reclaimed. They're doing this in a dense urban environment facing a suicidal enemy that's using civilians as shields."

Coalition air support has been pivotal to Iraq's fight against ISIS, helping Iraqi forces slowly claw back territory throughout Iraq's western Anbar province and up the Tigris River valley to Mosul. In addition to helping Iraqi forces retake territory, McGurk said the US-led coalition has killed 180 ISIS leaders since the campaign against the militants began more than two years ago.

ISIS overran Mosul in the summer of 2014 and swept across large swaths of the country's north and west. At the height of the group's power in Iraq, ISIS controlled nearly a third of the country.

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8049/US-led-coalition-killed-180-ISIS-leaders-Official

[tigergorzow]

Radio messages expose ISIS schism in right bank of Mosul

March 12 2017 02:23 PM

ISIS terrorists

A radio message from an ISIS militant – whose accent reveals that his origins are from Mosul- criticized the group's foreign leaders saying: "you have plighted us in the battle and ran away."
 

In many occasions, radio waves that ISIS has been using interfered with Iraqi Army's waves which enable them to know what the militants are up to.
 

ISIS militants were perplexed after their defense lines had fallen in the right bank of Mosul as more than 1,200 of their elements have been killed from the beginning of the operations to retake the embattled city.
 

The recapture of the governmental complex claimed the lives of 139 ISIS terrorists, Federal Police commander Gen. Raed Shaker Jawdat said.
 

US and Iraqis officials estimated at 1,500 to 2000 the approximate number of ISIS terrorists who were killed in the fighting in the right bank of Mosul of 1500 to 2000 militants.
 

Great differences between ISIS' local leaders and the foreign ones have been on the rise in Mosul, well informed sources said.
 

In the beginning of Mosul operations most of the deceased ISIS militants bodies belonged to Arab and foreign nationalities. However, the Iraqi army heard Iraqi ISIS terrorists on the radio accusing the foreigners of escaping to Raqqa in Syria, the presumed capital of the terrorist group, and leaving them to their fate, according to security sources.

ISIS terrorists took over the Raqqa governorate in Syria in the wake of fierce clashes with the Free Syrian Army and other Islamic groups fighting there. ISIS has later announced its so called "Islamic State" proclaiming Raqqa as its capital.
 

Reports claimed that ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi gathered his loyalists from the local tribes and gave them a speech where he criticized the lack of support from Iraqis to the foreign militants in the group, according to the source.

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8030/Radio-messages-expose-ISIS-schism-in-right-bank-of-Mosul

[ChuckFinley]

2 hours ago, tigergorzow said:

Military expert: ISIS lose in Mosul eliminates terrorism in Middle East

 

March 12 2017 05:43 PM

Ihssan al-Qaysoun

Iraqi security operations aiming to liberate the Mosul city from ISIS terrorists will help on eliminating the terrorist group in the region, a military expert said on Sunday.

In an interview with al-Ghad TV, Ihssan al-Qaysoun said that ISIS terrorist group became aware of their lose in the ongoing fighting in Mosul. It Just tries to stay as long as possible to drain the Iraqi forces.

Qaysoun called on Iraqi security forces to rapidly finalized this battle in order not to cause more suffering for civilians.

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8039/Military-expert-ISIS-lose-in-Mosul-eliminates-terrorism-in-Middle-East

I more on the lines of eliminating Iran influence in the area and terrorism subsides in the ME.  

[tigergorzow]

Mosul: Kurdish Reporter Injured in IS Shelling

 

Basnews English

12/03/2017 - 18:13

Kurdistan

 

ERBIL — A Kurdish reporter with Kurdistan24 news channel was injured on Sunday while in Mosul, north of Iraq.

According to Kurdistan24, Chakdar Jamal received injuries from an Islamic State (IS) mortar attack while covering the military developments in the war between the Iraqi army and IS insurgents.

Jamal’s wounds are slight and his condition is stable now, the news channel said.

Late in February this year, Kurdish female reporter, Shifa Gardi, lost her life while covering the war in Mosul. Her death widely reflected on social media, showing sympathy for those risking their lives to bring the latest news to people.

 

Kochar Jamal helping an injured child in Mosul 

http://www.basnews.com/index.php/en/news/kurdistan/335954

[tigergorzow]

UNAMI Provides Kurdish Students with Training on Human Rights Principles

 

Basnews English

12/03/2017 - 22:49

Kurdistan

 

ERBIL – The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) Human Rights Office (HRO), within its program of technical support to academic institutions in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, held four training sessions for students of the Faculty of Law and International Relations of Cihan University in Erbil, UNAMI said in a statement.

“Under the title “United Nations mechanisms for protection of human rights in time of peace and conflict”, four training sessions were delivered by HRO focused on the UN mechanism for the protection of human rights, UN role in armed conflict,  rights of children and the role of UNICEF in the protection of children, and the UN Charter and UDHR,” reads the statement.

Ten female and ten male students participated in the training which was held between March 1-7.

Inaugurating the training, president of Cihan University, Faud Mawlood, stressed the importance of cooperation between Cihan University and UNAMI HRO, and thanked for the continued technical support provided by HRO. At the closing ceremony, HRO provided the University’s library with copies of the booklet “Nine Core International Human Rights Treaties” in Kurdish language.

http://www.basnews.com/index.php/en/news/kurdistan/336012

[tigergorzow]

UN Distributes Kurdish-language Book on Human Rights in Kurdistan

 

Basnews English

12/03/2017 - 22:53

Kurdistan

 

ERBIL – The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) Human Rights Office has started distributing the booklet “Nine Core Human Rights Treaties and Three Optional Protocols” in Kurdish language to different subjects in the Kurdistan Region, according to a statement by the UNAMI.

“The Human Rights Office (HRO) facilitated the translation and printing of 10,000 copies of the booklet, which was officially presented for the occasion of marking the Human Rights Day on 10th of December, 2016,” reads the statement.

Given that core human rights instruments were never translated into Kurdish language, the booklet will contribute to the awareness on human rights and enable governmental institutions, legal practitioners, students and civil society to avail themselves of the reliable translation of relevant legal texts in their mother tongue.  UNAMI HRO conducted this activity as part of an ongoing technical support to the Kurdistan Region in meeting its obligations stipulated in the international human rights instruments.  

The booklet will be distributed, inter alia, to the following subjects in the Kurdistan Region: Kurdistan Parliament, Judicial Council, Office of Public Prosecutor, law enforcement agencies, ministries and directorates of the Kurdistan Regional Government and provinces, educational institutions, Independent Board of Human Rights, civil society organizations and public libraries.

http://www.basnews.com/index.php/en/news/kurdistan/336014

[tigergorzow]

Iraq Situation: UNHCR Flash Update - 11 March 2017

Report

from UN High Commissioner for Refugees

Published on 12 Mar 2017

Download PDF (455.83 KB)

KEY FIGURES

215,142 Iraqis currently internally displaced from Mosul and surrounding areas since military operations to retake the city began on 17 October 2016 (IOM-DTM Emergency Tracking since 17 October 2016.)

27,541 core relief item (CRIs) kits distributed to families in camps, assisting some 165,000 IDPs from Mosul and surrounding areas

6,577 family plots currently occupied out of 12,497 family plots (for some 75,000 people) in UNHCR built camps ready to receive IDPs displaced from the Mosul corridor

3 million IDPs since January 2014 (IOM-DTM as of 2 March 2017)

250,952 Iraqi refugees hosted in countries in the region, and 14,486 Iraqis received in Al Hol camp in Syria since 17 October 2016

FUNDING

USD 578 million requested for IDPs and Iraqi refugees in the region in 2017.

POPULATION MOVEMENTS

Over 215,000 persons are currently l internally displaced from Mosul and surrounding areas since the military operations began on 17 October 20161 . Operations to retake west Mosul began on 19 February. Since significant population movements started on 25 February, a steady influx of roughly 5,000 persons a day have been received in camps around Mosul.

IDPs fleeing west Mosul report fearing for their lives facing the dilemma of whether to stay or leaveand hunger appears to be the main displacement trigger.

SITUATION UPDATE

Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) continue to advance towards the old city of Mosul. Over the past week, ISF retook several landmarks including the Mosul Central Bank, Mosul General Hospital, and the Hurriyah Bridge - the second of five bridges connecting east and west Mosul to be retaken.. At present, roughly a third of west Mosul neighbourhoods are reported to be under ISF control.

Of the 700,000 to 800,000 civilians estimated to remain in west Mosul, at least 60,000 have fled. Most were received in the camps set up by the government, UNHCR, and IOM, while some have been sponsored by relatives and were able to move to villages east and south of Mosul.

Thousands of IDPs continue to arrive every day at the already crowded Hammam AlAlil screening site, where they undergo a last round of security screening before being transferred to camps or to host communities. The constant influx of IDPs has overwhelmed ISF capacity to process security clearance in a timely fashion, which results in families sometimes waiting up to 48 hours for security clearance. They receive shelter and basic humanitarian assistance at the reception centre UNHCR and partners constructed nearby.

UNHCR RESPONSE UPDATE

Camps south of Mosul, closer to west Mosul, are almost at capacity. The majority of IDPs are now transferred to camps further away, east of Mosul. At the current pace of arrivals, capacity currently available in camps east of Mosul will be full in a matter of days. About 3,400 plots for 28,000 people are immediately available in camps north and northeast of the city. More plots are made available every day, as WASH is completed and tents are pitched. In total, additional capacity for close to 200,000 IDPs is anticipated in camps currently under construction by the government and humanitarian partners around Mosul.

UNHCR is constructing three new camps around Mosul, to shelter an additional 70,000 IDPs, constituting 30% of the capacity expansion under construction. Around 88% of the 45,000 plots already built by the government, and humanitarian partners in camps around Mosul are occupied.

Families from west Mosul arrive tired, traumatized and hungry to Chamakor camp, where most new arrivals are now transferred. UNHCR and camp management have set up a “Welcome Centre” centre in the camp for new arrivals. Exhausted women and children are offered a private space, a hot meal and water immediately on arrival, before going through registration and being allocated a tent. About 3,700 persons have been received in Chamakor since the camp opened on 6 March.

UNHCR needs USD 212 million in 2017, to continue providing urgent assistance to Iraqis displaced from Mosul, including USD 7 million in the next 14 days and an additional USD 30 million in the next two months – total USD 37 million.

http://reliefweb.int/report/iraq/iraq-situation-unhcr-flash-update-11-march-2017

[tigergorzow]

Map: Locations of US forces mobilized in Mosul right bank

March 12 2017 11:47 PM

US forces in Mosul

Iraq Brigadier Khalil al Taei prepared a map that shows the US forces' mobilization in the right bank of the Mosul city in Nineveh governorate.



 

In a tweet on Sunday, military and security expert Taei said that location no. 1 will be for setting up a floating bridge, location no. 2 will witness heavy shelling and location no. 3 is planned to witness cautious advancement.

US-backed Iraqi forces have launched a large-scale military operation to dislodge (ISIS) militants from the western half of Mosul city, which has been in the hands of extremists since 2014. 
 

On February 19, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced the start of the operation on state TV, saying government forces were moving to "liberate the people of Mosul from Daesh oppression and terrorism forever", using the Arabic acronym for ISIS.

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8054/Map-Locations-of-US-forces-mobilized-in-Mosul-right-bank

[tigergorzow]

Iraqi Army overruns more ISIS-held villages on the western outskirts of Mosul

By

Chris Tomson

-

13/03/2017

BEIRUT, LEBANON (2:05 A.M.) – The Iraqi Armed Forces are slowly but surely on their way to victory in Mosul after new advancements were achieved inside the city and in rural areas of Nineveh province on Sunday.

Pushing southwards along the Tigris River from the recently liberated water plant, the Iraqi Army’s 16th Division and Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) were able to impose full control over the villages of Subaih and Darnajoj, northwest of Mosul.

Here, female residents could be seen throwing their Niqabs on the ground in celebration:

 

Chris Tomson | Al-Masdar News

 

Meanwhile, the Iraqi Federal Police and Rapid Response Division stormed Bab Al-Tob and made great progress in the area, coming within 300 meters of the Old Bridge and 500 meters of Al-Nuri mosque, the site where ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi held his first speech.

In addition, the Iraqi special forces finally imposed full control over the Al-Aghwat district after a prolonged battle with ISIS militants.

Effectively, the Iraqi Armed Forces have reached the Old City in the central part of western Mosul. This neighborhood consists of small, narrow streets that favor ISIS’ style of urban warfare which relies mostly on sniper nests, booby traps and suicide bombers.

After the Iraqi Armed Forces also entered the New Mosul District earlier today, ISIS controls little more than 15% of Iraq’s second largest city.

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/iraqi-army-overruns-isis-held-villages-western-outskirts-mosul/

[tigergorzow]

VIDEO: Iraqi forces repel ISIS infiltration attempts in Mount Makhoul

By

Paul Antonopoulos

-

13/03/2017

0

BEIRUT, LEBANON (2:08 A.M.) – ISIS terrorists made several attempts days ago to break into Iraqi hilltop positions.

The terrorists were then targeted with anti-tank guided missiles and mortar fire, which repelled the offensive.

The videos were filmed by members of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units in their tour of duty in the Jabal Makhoul area. 

Jabal Makhoul is located in Salahuddin Governorate to the north of Baghdad, and is currently being contested by ISIS and Iraqi forces.

 

 

 

 

 

 

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/video-iraqi-forces-repel-isis-infiltration-attempts-mount-makhoul/

 

[tigergorzow]

Iraqi troops tighten their grip around ISIS in Mosul (Video in link)

MOSUL, Iraq -- Iraqi troops backed by the U.S. military are tightening the noose around the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in the city of Mosul. 

ISIS fighters snipe at Iraqi forces who are pushing into Mosul’s Old City, which is one of the extremists’ last strongholds.

•  

Play Video

Saturday

CBS News was with Brigadier General Abbas Al Jbouri 350 yards from the frontline as he called in helicopter gunships targeting an ISIS position where they were burning tires to try to hide their location.

“This is the plan: We are going to move forward, we are going to fight ISIS house to house to liberate the civilians, but we put a safe sector for the civilian if they want to come to us,’” the general said.

The Iraqi troops are in a victorious mood on the frontline and it’s easy to understand why.

Nearly three years ago, ISIS fighters swept triumphantly across northern Iraq as many Iraqi soldiers ran away, rather than putting up a fight. 

ISIS captured Mosul with ease -- a gang of violent fanatics who claimed to have established a new “Islamic State.”

Now, Iraqi forces have regrouped and ISIS has been beaten back. Some Iraqi commanders say they’ll retake the entire city within weeks. 

Iraqi forces have regrouped and ISIS has been beaten back. 

CBS Evening News

They already have ISIS surrounded in Mosul and they’re pummeling the extremists.

But the cost of liberation is high as one city is smashed beyond recognition; Its people frightened and exhausted. They survived more than two years under ISIS only to see their neighborhoods turned into battlefields. 

“God bless you,” said one woman to the troops during this horrible week.

Six days ago, the fighting was on a street where the troops defused a roadside bomb -- a parting gift from the extremists.

Mosul will soon be free of ISIS, but they’ve left the city -- and its people -- with deep scars.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/battle-for-mosul-iraqi-troops-victorious-mood/

[tigergorzow]

Inherent Resolve‏Verified account @CJTFOIR 14h14 hours ago

 

On Mar. 11, #CJTFOIR conducted 22 strikes consisting of 82 engagements against ISIS terrorists in Syria & Iraq MORE:

http://ow.ly/ztaw309Pa93 pic.twitter.com/a7N1kbgRag

https://twitter.com/CJTFOIR

 

 

6:06 AM - 12 Mar 2017

[tigergorzow]

 🇮🇶Iraq Live Update‏ @IraqLiveUpdate 7h7 hours ago  (Video in link)

 

 

Iraq Epic Heroes! History will remember heroes from south of Iraq who stared death in the eye and fought the terrorists! #NoRetreat #NoFear

https://twitter.com/IraqLiveUpdate

[tigergorzow]

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 🇮🇶Iraq Live Update‏ @IraqLiveUpdate Mar 10

 

Ayatollah Sistani representative: Soon the Terrorists will not even have a foothold in #Iraq

pic.twitter.com/bsx5nuUJcn

https://twitter.com/IraqLiveUpdate

[tigergorzow]

IS “Trapped” in Mosul: US Envoy

The jihadists are going to die there, McGurk says

Basnews English

13/03/2017 - 00:44

Iraq

 

MOSUL — US special presidential envoy to the anti-Islamic State (IS) coalition has said IS jihadists are “trapped” inside Mosul.

“Any of the fighters left in Mosul, they’re going to die there,” Brett McGurk said on Sunday.

The statement followed reports from the Iraqi army confirming that they are now in control of the last road leading out of Mosul, practically surrounding the extremists in the city with almost no chance to survive.

Earlier the day, Iraqi Staff Major General Maan al-Saadi told the French news agency, AFP, that "around more than a third" of western Mosul is under the control of Iraqi units.

http://www.basnews.com/index.php/en/news/iraq/336026

Edited March 13, 2017 by tigergorzow

[tigergorzow]

Over 10,000 Civilians Flee West Mosul Last 24 Hours

 

Mira Rojkan

12/03/2017 - 23:28

Iraq

 

MOSUL — The estimated number of people who have fled the western part of Mosul has increased to nearly 100,000, with more than 10,000 fleeing in the last 24 hours, the Iraqi Minister of Displacement and Migration, Jassim Mohammed Al-Jaaf, said on Sunday.

Iraq's Ministry of Displacement and Migration received 10,607 civilians seeking shelter after fleeing western Mosul in the past 24 hours. After reaching the safe zones, the people were placed in emergency camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs) located south of the city of Mosul, Al-Jaaf said in a statement released on Sunday, according to Sputnik.

The Minister further explained that the ministry’s teams are currently working 24 hours a day putting all efforts towards receiving and hosting the Iraqi civilians who continue to flee the areas of western Mosul where the ongoing operation against the Islamic State (IS) militants continues.

The Iraqi government launched the operation for liberating the norther Iraqi city of Mosul back in October last year, with the support of the US-led coalition and local government-backed forces, including the Kurdish Peshmerga forces and the Shi'ite militia Hashd al-Shaabi. The Iraqi forces managed to liberate the entire eastern part of the city at the beginning of this year, allowing thousands of civilians to return to their homes, while the government and the military focuses on liberating the western side of Mosul.

http://www.basnews.com/index.php/en/news/iraq/336021