RNA - The comprehensive military campaign by Iraqi military forces to liberate the Northern city of Mosul from ISIL militants continued on Tuesday, with local reports saying that Iraqi government troops completed the operation to liberate a district adjacent to Central Mosul’s Old City.
Iraqi Forces Fully Recapture District Adjacent to Mosul’s Old City
Iraqi government troops completed Monday the operation to liberate a district near Central Mosul’s Old City after they embarked on the operation on Saturday, local media reported.
The Joint Operations Command said in a statement that the army’s elite Counter-Terrorism Forces fully retook Mosul al-Jadida (New Mosul), a district adjacent to the Old City. The latter is a densely-populated neighborhood and an outstanding target of operations against Islamic State militants in western Mosul, Iraqi News reported.
Government forces swept through Mosul al-Jadida’s neighborhoods since Saturday, engaging in ferocious fights with ISIL militants. Iraqi generals were quoted earlier on Monday saying three soldiers were killed in ISIL attacks, while troops killed at least 20 militants.
Iraq Forces Advance after ISIL Militants 'Trapped' in Mosul
Iraqi forces said Monday they had taken more territory from ISIL as they press an offensive that has seen them recapture a third of West Mosul and trap militants inside.
A renewed push launched on March 5 has forced ISIL out of several neighborhoods and key sites, including the main local government headquarters and the famed Mosul museum, tightening the noose around fighters there, the Daily Star reported.
West Mosul is the most-populated urban area still held by the extremists, followed by Syria's Raqqa, which is also a key target in the US-led anti-ISIL campaign.
Iraqi Official: Infrastructure in Western Mosul Destroyed by 40%
A municipal official in Iraqi province of Nineveh said destruction caused by ISIL militants and battles with security forces have inflicted 40 percent of the infrastructure in the Western side of Mosul.
Nineveh province council member, Hassan Sabaawi said the scope of destruction occurred as ISIL militants blew up civilian and government property, Al Maalomah reported.
He added that the density of residential areas, especially at Wadi Hajar and Tayaran districts, added to the crisis.
Iraqi Federal Police Recapture Souk al-Arbaa, Remah Square in Central Mosul
Iraqi Federal Police announced the liberation of Souk al-Arbaa and al-Remah Square in Bab al-Toub, in central Mosul, while the Iraqi security forces are pushing ahead with the operation to eventually run the ISIL militants out of the Northern city.
"Troops of the Federal Police liberated Souk al-Arbaa and al-Remah Square in Bab al-Toub, in Central Mosul,” said Iraqi Federal Police Chief, Lieutenant General Raed Shaker Jawdat, Iraqi News reported.
Earlier, the Defense Ministry’s War Media Cell announced that elite Counter-Terrorism Forces also took over al-Aghawat district, near Mosul’s Old City.
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