Mosul update

[tigergorzow]

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Mosul Eye عين الموصل‏ @MosulEye 4h4 hours ago

 

ISIL is mass executing Mosulis in Mosul NOW STOP THOSE EXECUTIONS NOW

pic.twitter.com/geYCkvhbpB

https://twitter.com/MosulEye?ref_src=twsrc^google|twcamp^serp|twgr^author

[SnowGlobe7]

funny the year on those reports is 2066

[tigergorzow]

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le_carabinier‏ @LCarabinier 20m20 minutes ago

 

Map: #Nineveh #Mosul #Shingal military situation one year later, 23 March 2016-23 March 2017. https://imagopyrenaei.files.wordpress.com/2017/03/nineveh-23m2017.png … #Sinjar #ezidis

pic.twitter.com/zvF6lxSRFD

https://twitter.com/hashtag/mosul

 

 

[tigergorzow]

 

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boppinmule‏ @boppinmule 21m21 minutes ago

Iraqi troops continue advance on west #Mosul https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAK_NWsP2ns … pic.twitter.com/LHnyfPweQo

https://twitter.com/hashtag/mosul 

[tigergorzow]

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 🇮🇶Iraq Live Update‏ @IraqLiveUpdate 13h13 hours ago

 

Mosul Status Update as of 10am Today! Green: Secured by Iraqi Forces #Iraq pic.twitter.com/6lgEhfvlpa

https://twitter.com/IraqLiveUpdate

[tigergorzow]

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 🇮🇶Iraq Live Update‏ @IraqLiveUpdate 13h13 hours ago

 

#Iraq pic.twitter.com/gvdPuBE9D3

 

https://twitter.com/IraqLiveUpdate

 

 

[tigergorzow]

 

 

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 🇮🇶Iraq Live Update‏ @IraqLiveUpdate 14h14 hours ago

 

Iraqi Federal Police 5th Division continue operations in #Mosul despite heavy rainfall #Iraq pic.twitter.com/o3DCG0hhnK

https://twitter.com/IraqLiveUpdate

[10 YEARS LATER]

On 3/22/2017 at 7:40 PM, tigergorzow said:

10YL,  More than likely it may have been the newly arrived B-52's bombing the crap out of ISIS hiding in the houses.

Right you are Tiger - We do manufacture some real bad a$$ military gear.!  

[tigergorzow]

20 gov't forces, IMIS killed, wounded in clashes with ISIS in Mosul

March 24 2017 10:32 AM

Governmental Forces

At least 20 elements of the Joint Governmental Forces and IMIS militias have been killed and wounded  in clashes with ISIS terror group in villages in western Mosul's right bank, The Baghdad Post reported on Friday. 

Informed sources said in statements, "Fierce battles have broken out between police, Rapid Response Forces, Counter-Terrorism Units and IMIS militias from one side and ISIS terrorists from the other in districts in western Mosul in Nineveh governorate".

ISIS has carried out three car bomb attacks that killed five and wounded 15, some of them seriously, and destroyed six military vehicles, the sources added. 

US-backed Iraqi forces and Iranian-backed sectarian militias of IMIS launched an offensive on February 19 to oust ISIS terrorists from the right bank of Mosul.

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8562/20-gov-t-forces-IMIS-killed-wounded-in-clashes-with-ISIS-in-Mosul

[tigergorzow]

Military tactics in Mosul right bank endanger civilians: Official

March 24 2017 12:56 PM

Osama al-Nujaifi

Iraqi Vice President Osama al-Nujaifi warned against the military tactics in Mosul's right bank, urging the governmental forces and the International Coalition to adopt the successful methods used in liberating the left bank of the city, The Baghdad Post reported on Friday.
 

In a press statement, al-Nujaifi said that the current tactics endanger more than 400,000 civilians in the right bank of Mosul.
 

He added that aerial bombardment and the excessive use of artillery and rockets had claimed hundreds of  lives.
 

Nujaifi called for issuing immediate orders to halt any bombardment on civilian areas and to direct rescue and medical teams to help the city's civilians, especially amid bad weather conditions.
 

He also called on relief organizations to provide immediate aids to Mosul residents who suffer from the ongoing battles, warning  the humanitarian situation could exacerbate.
 

Nujaifi also noted that the Iraqi government didn't take the necessary precautions to prevent this crisis despite many calls to prepare for expected mass exodus from the city as soon as the military operation began.

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8568/Military-tactics-in-Mosul-right-bank-endanger-civilians-Official

[tigergorzow]

Video: Eyewitness says Mosul right bank sees massacres

March 24 2017 01:46 PM

Mosul battle

 

An eyewitness from Mosul's right bank has confirmed the city sees massacres and deteriorating humanitarian situation, a footage obtained by The Baghdad Post revealed on Friday. 

Speaking to al-Rafidain satellite channel, Ahmed Senjari said, "Hundreds of civilians were killed and a lot of his relatives are lost under the rubble". 

What is happening in Mosul is not a liberation operation, but a catastrophe, he added. 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8569/Video-Eyewitness-says-Mosul-right-bank-sees-massacres

[tigergorzow]

Norwegian Refugee Council: Humanitarian crisis in Mosul exacerbates

March 24 2017 01:52 PM

Right bank of Mosul displaced citizens

The displaced people from the right bank of Mosul suffer severe lacks of finance and human resources to provide aid and relief services, The Norwegian Refugee Council spokesman, Salah Nuri, said on Friday.
 

The number of shelters provided to the displaced citizens is very limited and doesn't fit with the massive numbers of residents fleeing from the right bank of Mosul, Nuri added, noting that the crisis will exacerbate in case more citizens flee the city.
 

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees revealed on Thursday that more than 400,000 residents in Mosul's right bank are trapped and face grim fate as the clashes between ISIS and the Iraqi forces are getting fiercer every day.

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8570/Norwegian-Refugee-Council-Humanitarian-crisis-in-Mosul-exacerbates

[tigergorzow]

ISIS terrorists execute 20 civilians in Mosul

March 24 2017 02:52 PM

head of Nineveh council's human rights committee Ghazwan Hamid al-Daoudi

ISIS terrorists have executed 20 civilians at al-Matahen neighborhood in the right bank of Mosul, head of Nineveh council's human rights committee, Ghazwan Hamid al-Daoudi, said on Friday.
 

The terrorists ordered al-Matahen residents to evacuate their houses to another area at the western part of Mosul, but some refused so they were executed by a firing squad, al-Daoudi added.
 

ISIS terrorists have not only executed the men who refused their orders but they also confiscated their families's possessions and women's valuables, according to al-Daoudi.

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8571/ISIS-terrorists-execute-20-civilians-in-Mosul

[tigergorzow]

Hundreds of civilian casualties after random shelling in Mosul

March 24 2017 03:25 PM

shelling in Mosul

Random shelling by the Iraqi forces and US-led Coalition on civilians' homes has left hundreds of casualties in the right bank of Mosul, eye witnesses told The Baghdad Post on Friday.
 

The witnesses asserted that bombardment targeted every house with an ISIS militant on its roof.
 

ISIS terrorists are using "scorched land" tactics to inflict massive civilians casualties.

They have deployed their militants on the roofs of Mosul houses to halt the advancement of the Iraqi forces and prevent their residents to leave which results in hundreds of casualties due to shelling these houses.

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8573/Hundreds-of-civilian-casualties-after-random-shelling-in-Mosul

[tigergorzow]

ISIS sniper shoots killed kid in Mosul

March 24 2017 03:31 PM

Breaking

An ISIS sniper has shot dead an Iraqi child in Mosul's right bank, The Baghdad Post reported on Friday.

The victim, identified as Bassam Abdallah, was killed in Mosul al-Jadedah district. 

The terror group has carried out tens of terror attacks against civilians in Mosul, mostly women and children. 

Since Feb. 19, the Iraqi army, supported by the international coalition, has made advances against the terror group and liberated the left bank of the city.   

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8574/ISIS-sniper-shoots-killed-kid-in-Mosul

[tigergorzow]

Family of seven killed in Mosul city

March 24 2017 06:15 PM

Breaking

A seven-member family was killed in an air strike in Bab Jadid district in central Mosul, a source told The Baghdad Post on Friday.

This is not the first family to be killed in air raids held by Iraqi government and its militias against innocent civilians in the war-torn city.

Since Feb. 19, the Iraqi army, supported by the international coalition, has made advances against ISIS terror group and liberated the left bank of the city.

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8579/Family-of-seven-killed-in-Mosul-city

[tigergorzow]

ISIS's vicious tactics claim lives of more civilians in Mosul

March 24 2017 06:16 PM

More lives claimed in Mosul

Dozens of civilians have been killed in indiscriminate bombings carried out by the jets of the US-led coalition in Mosul, eyewitnesses told the Baghdad Post.

The jets bombarded the already dilapidated homes of civilians in the right bank of Mosul, they added.

Jets of US-led coalition, in partnership with the Iraqi Air Force and artillery units, bombed every single home on its rooftop there was an ISIS terrorist, the witnesses further noted.

This is a new tactic by ISIS terrorists to claim lives of more civilians, according to them.

The terror group storms homes of civilians in the areas under their control. Then one of the group's terrorists stands with anti-aircraft projectiles on rooftops, causing the US-led jets to bomb these houses with the families locked up inside them. 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8580/ISIS-s-vicious-tactics-claim-lives-of-more-civilians-in-Mosul

[tigergorzow]

ISIS gunmen target civilians fleeing Mosul by night -Reuters

March 24 2017 07:42 PM

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Reuters

ISIS gunmen are opening fire on men, women and children as they try to flee Mosul under cover of darkness, civilians who escaped the besieged Iraqi city said on Friday.

Hungry and exhausted, thousands sloshed through the mud, past wrecked buildings and shattered pavements, to reach an army checkpoint.

Some carried suitcases or bags, others had fled with just the clothes on their backs. They came by foot or piled into carts, and some pushed relatives in wheelchairs.

A black-uniformed intelligence officer said about 6,000 people had come through on Thursday, the most he had seen at this exit, and a similar flow had poured in on Friday since about 4 a.m.

Relieved to reach the safety of the checkpoint, some of those escaping described running a gauntlet of fire.
"The snipers are professional, they do not care. Anybody that moves, they kill," said Faris Khader, from al-Abar district.

The battle for Mosul, ISIS last major urban stronghold in Iraq, has now lasted more than five months. Government forces recaptured the east side in January and are besieging the militants on the western side of the Tigris river.

At least 500,000 civilians are trapped inside, battered by government and U.S.-led air strikes and artillery, caught in the crossfire of ground fighting, or targeted by IS gunmen. The militants sometimes use residents as human shields.

Khader blamed the government and international coalition for some of the death and mayhem. An IS sniper had been firing from the roof of his home when an air strike hit, he said.

"There are many people dead under the rubble. Some in my family died. Nobody can take the bodies out. They were killed by an air strike."

'NO FOOD, NO WATER'


Omar, a car mechanic, described life under IS.

"It's very difficult. There's no food, no water. They are killing a lot of people. They kill anyone who goes out, they kill them in the street.

"We have no money. We have suffered for three years," he said, clutching his young son to his shoulder.

Salwan, 19, pushed his sister Noor, 21, who is paralyzed and deaf, for more than two hours in her wheelchair to reach safety after their house was blown up. They were shot at during the trek, he said.

Sweat poured from the face of Khaled Khalil as he trudged up the last stretch of the debris-strewn boulevard with his young son slung on his shoulder and his wife and three other children behind. He had no coat, no bag, and just a pair of plastic sandals on his mud-spattered feet.

"I came like this. We had the chance so we fled," said the 36-year-old. "We have been traveling since yesterday. We are very tired but now we are safe."

He was a carpenter but his shop had been destroyed.

TAKING THE RISK



Then an army jeep drove up with a wounded man on a stretcher. He was laid on the ground by an abandoned building.

Bashar Hazem, 43, and Ali, 29, had carried out their brother Maan, 32, overnight. He was shot in the right thigh 20 days ago. He was bandaged up in the Jamhori hospital inside an IS-held area but left for home after three days because it was dangerous. He had no painkillers and grimaced as his brothers spoke.

"We had no food. That's why we decided to risk escaping," Bashar said.

They made a run with a big group in the early hours of Friday. But IS gunmen starting shooting at them and the group was split up. They saw three women shot in the legs.

"Even if you are injured, they shoot at you. Our family is still inside but they are coming soon, God willing," Ali said.

At the checkpoint, soldiers separated the women and children from the men. They waited, tired but visibly relieved, for buses to take them to a United Nations reception camp at Hamman al-Alil about 20 km (15 miles) away.

The men were gathered in a park, sitting on the ground under guard by soldiers and awaiting questioning.

"We do a first check here. Anyone we suspect of working with Daesh (IS), we pull to one side," the intelligence officer said.

Some IS fighters had tried to leave disguised as women, their faces concealed by veils, he said, scrutinizing arrivals.

The men were then loaded onto trucks and taken to a center for more thorough checks.

An avuncular Sergeant Hussam Imad told jokes to a group of women and children waiting to be transported to the reception camp. They boarded the bus with smiles on their faces.

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8584/ISIS-gunmen-target-civilians-fleeing-Mosul-by-night-Reuters

[tigergorzow]

Iraqi forces to deploy new tactics in Mosul, civilians flee city -Reuters

March 24 2017 08:21 PM

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Iraqi forces are to deploy new tactics in a fresh push against ISIS terrorists in Mosul, Reuters quoted military officials as saying on Friday, after advances slowed in the campaign to drive the militants out of their last stronghold in the country.

Iraq's military is assessing opening up another front and isolating Mosul's Old City, where the militants have put up fierce resistance, a U.S. deputy commanding general for the coalition said.

Families are streaming out of the northern Iraqi city in their thousands each day, headed for cold, crowded camps or to stay with relatives. Hunger and deadly fighting are making life unbearable inside.

The U.S.-backed offensive to drive ISIS out of Mosul, now in its sixth month, has recaptured most of the city. The entire eastern side and around half of the west is under Iraqi control.

But advances have stuttered in the last two weeks as fighting enters the narrow alleys of the Old City, home to the al-Nuri mosque where ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared a caliphate spanning large areas of Iraq and Syria in 2014.

The militants have used car bombs, snipers and mortar fire to counter the offensive, firing from crowded residential areas and complicating the battle plan especially since troops entered the crowded Old City.

U.S. Army Brigadier General John Richardson, a deputy commanding general in the coalition, said the solution could lie in a change of tactics.

"They (Iraqi forces) are looking at opening another front to force ISIS to fight on two directions and isolate the Old City, so when it is time to go into the old city, potentially they surrender," he told Reuters.

Richardson said the Iraqi forces could move army units in from the north while other brigades build up positions around the Old City.

"That is going to force ISIS to fight on two fronts, and I don't think they have that capability," he said.

Richardson said it was hard to estimate the number of militants left in the city, but said the quality of fighter was declining as their ranks were depleted.
 
An Iraqi defense ministry spokesman, who also spoke of new tactics, said elite Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) forces made some advances against the militants on Friday.

"In the next few days we will surprise Daesh terrorists by targeting and eliminating them using new plans" Brigadier General Yahya Rasool told state TV, without elaborating.

Rasool said CTS forces had advanced in tough, building-to-building battles to recapture areas outside the Old City including al-Yabsat.

ISIS fighters had been positioning car bombs, and forcing residents to move furniture onto the streets which the militants were booby-trapping to slow Iraqi advances, he said.

Reuters could not independently verify the new advances by the CTS.

No new advances were reported in the Old City, where elite Rapid Response forces, an interior ministry unit, and Federal Police are involved in the fighting. The Federal Police said they were clearing houses and securing areas that they had already entered.

Fighting in the eastern half of the city ended in January, but in a sign of the challenges still faced there, security forces killed one suicide bomber before he detonated his explosives. Police said the bomber had crossed the Tigris from the west.

SNIPER DANGER



ISIS fighters have stationed themselves in homes belonging to Mosul residents to fire at Iraqi troops, often drawing air or artillery strikes that have killed civilians.

One police officer said the new tactics would also involve deploying additional sniper units against ISIS sharpshooters. The officer asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of discussing military tactics.

The militants have launched a series of counter-attacks, sometimes pinning down Iraqi forces on the southern edges of the Old City. Cloud cover and rain in recent weeks have prevented effective air support, military officials say.

As the battle continues, more civilians are being killed or displaced.

Local officials and residents said on Thursday dozens of people were buried in collapsed buildings after an air raid against ISIS triggered a massive explosion last week.

The U.S. coalition said there was an investigation into those reports.

Outside the city on Friday, hundreds of displaced people trudged through mud clutching suitcases and bags.

One man said that ISIS snipers were shooting at fleeing residents, and some had been killed in explosions.

Residents described grim living conditions inside the city, saying there was no running water or electricity and no food coming in.

Khaled Khalil, a 36-year-old carpenter whose shop was destroyed in fighting, clutched his three-year-old daughter.

"We've been on the move since yesterday. We're very tired but now we're safe. Anybody they (ISIS catch, they kill. If we have time, we run," he said.

As many as 600,000 civilians remain in the western half of Mosul.

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8588/Iraqi-forces-to-deploy-new-tactics-in-Mosul-civilians-flee-city-Reuters

[ChuckFinley]

This is truly a messed up situation. With as fast as they are moving you would think that Mosel would be wrapped up by the end of the month, I am hoping so.  

[tigergorzow]

Pentagon investigating report on civilian casualties in recent Mosul airstrike

March 24 2017 10:36 PM

US to probe botched raid

The Pentagon on Friday acknowledged that the U.S.-led coalition fighting ISIS terrorists carried out an airstrike in a western Mosul neighborhood and that it is "looking into" reports that the bombing left more than 100 civilians dead.

"We are aware of reports on airstrikes in Mosul resulting in civil casualties," Eric Pahon, a Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement to Fox News.

"The Coalition conducted several strikes near Mosul and [coalition forces are] looking in to these reports. The Department of Defense takes all reports of civil legalties very seriously and assesses all incidents as thoroughly as possible. "

The suspected civil body count underscores the problems that Iraqi troops face in their weeks-long campaign to drive out the Sunni militant group from the densely urban part of Iraq's second-largest city.

Residents of the neighborhood where the airstrike occurred, known as Mosul Jidideh, told a team of Associated Press correspondents at the scene that scores of residents are believed to have been killed by a pair of airstrikes that hit a cluster of homes in the area earlier this Month.

"Over 137 people were inside. The entire neighborhood was fleeing because of missiles that hit, so people were taking refuge here," said Ahmed Ahmed, one of the residents of the neighborhood.

One airstrike hit the residential area on March 13, followed by a second strike four days later, the residents said.

The Pentagon's announcement on Friday comes two days after it reported it was investigating claims that a U.S. military airstrike recently hit a school in northern Syria and allegedly killed dozens of civilians.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based monitoring group, said that at least 33 bodies were dropped from the rubble at the school, which had housed at least 50 families fleeing violence elsewhere in the war-torn nation. 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/8592/Pentagon-investigating-report-on-civilian-casualties-in-recent-Mosul-airstrike

[tigergorzow]

Police seize IS command center in western Mosul’s Old City

 

by Mohamed Mostafa Mar 24, 2017, 11:08 am

Whatsapp

 

 

The commander of the Federal Police Command, Raed Shakir Jawdat. Archival photo.

 

Nineveh (IraqiNews.com) Iraqi Federal Police forces seized on Friday an Islamic State command center in central Mosul’s Old City as operations press on to recapture the district from the extremist group.

The service’s chief, Shaker Jawdat, said the forces found documents, explosive devices, weapons and communication sets inside the facility.

 

Bab al-Jadid neighborhood in the Old City, Mosul

Iraqi government forces recaptured eastern Mosul in January and launched an offensive in February to recapture the western region. Iraqi troops are currently working to retake central Mosul districts from IS militants, specifically eyeing the city’s grand mosque where the group’s self-styled “Caliphate” was declared in 2014.

Iraqi generals have viewed the Old City as vital for realizing victory against IS in the western side, but also admitted it was very difficult to advance through with military vehicles. Bad weather over the past few days has further hardened the troops’ mission, prompting the commanders to rely on drones and artillery strikes to bring down militants shielding themselves in the middle of civilians.

Generals from the Iraqi military command and the allied U.S.-led coalition have reiterated that IS powers were waning, with many senior leaders either killed or escaped.

http://www.iraqinews.com/iraq-war/police-seize-command-center-western-mosuls-old-city/

[tigergorzow]

Iraqi forces to deploy new tactics in Mosul, civilians flee city

 

by Loaa Adel Mar 24, 2017, 7:41 pm

Whatsapp

 

 

Displaced Iraqis flee their homes as Iraqi forces battle with Islamic State militants, in western Mosul, Iraq March 24, 2017. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem

 

Nineveh (Reuters) Iraqi forces are to deploy new tactics in a fresh push against Islamic State in Mosul, military officials said on Friday, after advances slowed recently in the campaign to drive the militants out of their last stronghold in the country.

Elite Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) forces made some advances against the jihadists in areas of western Mosul later in the day, a defense spokesman said, despite a hold on operations by other units.

Families meanwhile streamed out of the northern Iraqi city in an ongoing exodus of people fleeing in their thousands each day, headed for cold, crowded camps or to stay with relatives.

The U.S.-backed offensive to drive Islamic State out of Mosul, now in its sixth month, has recaptured most of the city. The entire eastern side and around half of the west is under Iraqi control.

But advances have stuttered in the last two weeks as fighting enters the narrow-alleyed Old City, and the militants put up fierce resistance using car bombs, snipers and mortar fire against forces and residents.

“In the next few days we will surprise Daesh terrorists by targeting and eliminating them using new plans” being discussed by the joint operations command, Iraqi defense ministry spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Rasool told state TV.

He did not elaborate on tactics.

Rasool said CTS forces had advanced in tough, building-to-building battles to recapture areas outside the Old City including al-Yabsat.

Islamic State fighters had been positioning car bombs, and forcing residents to move furniture onto the streets which the militants were booby-trapping to slow Iraqi advances, he said.

Reuters could not independently verify new advances by the CTS.

In the Old City, which Iraq’s elite Rapid Response forces, an interior ministry unit, and Federal Police have pushed into, no new advances were reported.

Rapid Response spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Abdel Amir al-Mohammedawi said operations were on hold for the day, but would soon resume, with “new techniques” more suitable to fighting in the Old City.

A Federal Police officer told Reuters new tactics would include deploying additional sniper units against Islamic State sharpshooters. The officer asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of discussing military tactics.

Islamic State fighters have stationed themselves in homes belonging to Mosul residents to fire at Iraqi troops, often drawing air or artillery strikes that have killed civilians.

SNIPER DANGER

They have also launched counter-attacks, sometimes pinning down Iraqi forces on the southern edges of the Old City. Cloud cover and rain in recent weeks have prevented effective air support, military officials say.

One of the next targets of Iraqi forces inside the Old City is the al-Nuri mosque, whose recapture would be a key symbolic victory. It is where Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared a caliphate spanning large areas of Iraq and Syria in 2014.

As the battle continues, more civilians are being killed or displaced.

Local officials and residents said on Thursday dozens of people were buried in collapsed buildings after an air raid against Islamic State triggered a massive explosion last week.

Outside the city on Friday, hundreds of displaced people poured out of Mosul, walking through the mud with suitcases and bags.

One man said that Islamic State snipers had shot at those fleeing, and some had been killed in explosions.

The situation inside the city is worsening with no drinking water or electricity and no food coming in, residents said.

Khaled Khalil, a 36-year-old carpenter whose shop was destroyed in fighting, clutched his three-year-old daughter.

“We’ve been on the move since yesterday. We’re very tired but now we’re safe. Anybody they (Islamic State) catch, they kill. If we have time, we run,” he said.

http://www.iraqinews.com/iraq-war/iraqi-forces-deploy-new-tactics-mosul-civilians-flee-city/

[tigergorzow]

Iraqi vice president blames govt forces for Mosul civilian deaths

 

by Mohamed Mostafa Mar 24, 2017, 9:11 am

Whatsapp

 

 

Iraqi Vice President Osama al-Nujaifi. File photo.

 

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) Iraqi Vice President Osama al-Nujaifi has blamed civilian deaths in western Mosul on Thursday on an “excessive use of airstrikes, artillery and rockets” by Iraqi forces and allied troops during operations against Islamic State militants.

In a statement on Friday, Nujaifi said mutual trust between the armed forces and Mosul citizens “should not be violated by some groups of fighters who use unsuitable weapons in targeting Daesh (Islamic State).”

“Longe- effect weapons, such as cannons and rockets, cause damages which our citizens in Mosul suffer from more than Daesh criminals do, and they also destroy the infrastructure owned by people,” according to the vice president. “The intensity of the fight against Daesh does not spare officials and commanders the moral and humanitarian responsibility for the increasing number of innocent civilian victims who had been obliged by the terrorist group to stay home”.

On Thursday, at least more than 200 civilians reportedly died in an aerial bombardment of western Mosul’s Mosul al-Jadida district as operations enter a second month to clear the area from Islamic State militants. Iraqi forces recaptured eastern Mosul in January.

The reports, which failed to verify the source of the bombardment, quoted some military sources and local officials saying hundreds of bodies were extracted while others remained under debris as forces lacked digging tools needed to pull out victims, and as IS fighters continue to fire at the affected areas.

Officials from the U.S.-led coalition, which fights IS alongside the government, and which reports said was suspected to be behind several civilian deaths, said it they would investigate recent incidents. The Iraqi military command denied involvement in the deaths on Thursday, accusing Islamic State of fabricating the reports to mislead the public.

Nujaifi, in his statement, urged the Iraqi government and the U.S. coalition to reconsider engagement rules and to reuse the :successful” strategy adopted in recapturing the eastern side of the city. “Changes to the rules of engagement are a very serious matter, especially in the presence of 400.000 citizens,” he said, urging the Iraqi command to issue orders not to target populated areas.

The conflict in Mosul has displaced at least 355.000 people, according to government data.

http://www.iraqinews.com/features/iraqi-vice-president-blames-govt-forces-mosul-civilian-deaths/

[Synopsis]

The last article states, "Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) Iraqi Vice President Osama al-Nujaifi has blamed civilian deaths in western Mosul on Thursday on an “excessive use of airstrikes, artillery and rockets” by Iraqi forces and allied troops during operations against Islamic State militants."

And

"Nujaifi, in his statement, urged the Iraqi government and the U.S. coalition to reconsider engagement rules and to reuse the :successful” strategy adopted in recapturing the eastern side of the city. “Changes to the rules of engagement are a very serious matter, especially in the presence of 400.000 citizens,” he said, urging the Iraqi command to issue orders not to target populated areas."

Hmmmm......................why is this nut case making these statements now? Eastern Mosul was not without it's civilian casualties. May or may not be more civilian casualties in Western Mosul compared to Eastern Mosul. What and how is ISIS supposed to be wrested from controlling these areas since ISIS does not follow warfare protocols by using civilians as human shields? Is the retaking of Mosul to be stopped until ISIS agrees to let everybody go? Yeah, right, not going to happen PAL!

Conversely, this may be a very good sign for Nujaifi to make this statement since it shows his colors. Nujaifi may be making these statements due to his facilitation in the ISIS take over of Iraq territories in 2014 along with Maliki and others. Likely, Nujaifi is complicit and will be identified for indictment, prosecution, conviction, and maybe even execution. As the complete retaking of Mosul happens, more and more naysayers may come out of the wood work since they know their days are numbered and will do anything to escape the consequences of their actions.

If nothing else, Nujaifi and those like him are indicating the complete retaking of Mosul is imminent and their days of inciting chaos are nearing an end and real soon!

As always, just my opinion and 

Go Moola Nova!