Battle for Mosul Day 153:

Iraqi Forces “Very Close” to Grand Nuri Mosque

Rasa - The comprehensive military campaign by Iraqi military forces to liberate the Northern city of Mosul from ISIL militants continued on Sunday, with local reports saying that Iraqi government troops are “very close” to a strategic mosque in Western Mosul.

News ID: 428274

Date: 19 March 2017 - 22:21

RNA - The comprehensive military campaign by Iraqi military forces to liberate the Northern city of Mosul from ISIL militants continued on Sunday, with local reports saying that Iraqi government troops are “very close” to a strategic mosque in Western Mosul.

Iraqi Forces “Very Close” to Famous Western Mosul Mosque

Commander of Iraqi Federal Police said the Iraqi forces was “very close” to a strategic mosque in Western Mosul, proceeding with operations to clear the area from ISIL militants.

Iraq’s Federal Police chief, Lt. Gen. Shaker Jawdat, said in a statement on Sunday that his forces were very close to the Grand Nuri Mosque in Old Mosul, another primary target for Iraqi security forces seeking to eradicate ISIL from Western Mosul since February, Iraqi News reported.

The Nuri Mosque was the location where ISIL ringleader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi delivered his famous sermon in 2014.

Iraqi Security Forces Recapture 2 Central Mosul Districts

Iraqi security forces moved deeper inside central Mosul on Sunday, and recaptured two more districts while killing and arresting several ISIL militants, media reports said.

A security source said the forces took full control of Khaled ibn al-Walid and Bab al-Sijn neighborhoods near Central Mosul’s Old City, opening safe exit routes for civilians, Skypress reported.

The troops moved on to al-Matahen (mills) area, killing 17 militants, including two suicide bombers.

Also near the Old City, Borhan al-Abdali, a lieutenant at the army’s Counter-Terrorism Force, told Anadolu Agency his forces retook Fatah al-Ali, an alleyway in the nearby Mosul al-Jadida district, killing 14 militants after two hours of intense fighting.

Hadi Al-Ameri: ISIL Not Able to Flee to Syria

Secretary-General of Iraq's Badr Organization Hadi al-Ameri underlined that all ISIL escape routes in Iraq have been blocked and the terrorists cannot flee to Syria at all.

Al-Ameri told al-Mayadeen news channel that his forces have managed to create different fronts in Mosul, Tal Afar and Mosul general region to drive a wedge between the ISIL terrorists in the region.

"We preferred to start the operations from the Western side of Mosul and then enter the Tal Afar battleground so that the ISIL's supply routes will be blocked," he said.

12 Iraqi Civilians Injured in ISIL Chemical Attack on Mosul Liberated Areas

Twelve civilians were injured in a chemical attack conducted by ISIL militants in the Iraqi Northern city of Mosul, police said.

The attack was launched on the liberated areas of Mosul, using highly toxic gases, a police spokesman in the province of Nineveh said, Bas News reported.

Captain Yunis Mohammed said in a press statement that at least twelve civilians, including women and children, suffered severe suffocation, as a result of a chemical attack with toxic gases conducted by the ISIL militants.

Iraqi Forces Discover Underground ISIL Prison in Central Mosul

Iraqi forces discovered an ISIL prison in the area of Bab al-Saray during a search operation in Central Mosul, a federal police officer said.

Colonel Khodier Saleh said in a statement that Iraqi forces have found an underground tunnel leading to a prison, set up and used by the ISIL militants in the Bab al-Saray area, in Central Mosul, Iraqi News reported.

According to Saleh's statement the prison contained a torturing room, a large amount of missiles and light weapons, as well as ten prisoners. The prisoners among whom were three former army officers.

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