Iraqi Military:

Over 200 ISIL Militants Killed in Southwestern Tal Afar

Rasa - More than 200 ISIL militants were killed in the Southwestern direction of Tal Afar, which was handled by the army’s Counter-Terrorism Service, the Joint Operations Command announced.

News ID: 432001

Date: 28 August 2017 - 19:10

RNA - The command said in a statement that 217 militants and eight snipers were wounded. Twenty-one booby-trapped vehicle were destroyed, while three others were defused, Iraqi News reported.

"105 explosives and fifteen booby-trapped houses were defused. Six tunnels were filled. Several weapons, telecommunications devices and vehicles were seized," the statement added.

Earlier, the military media said government troops and allied paramilitary forces had retaken full control over the town in a seven-day offensive after Iraqi PM Haidar al-Abadi announced in a televised speech on August 20 the beginning of operations to recapture Tal Afar, which has been held by the militants since 2014, when the militant group first emerged to proclaim its self-styled ‘rule’.

This came after 40 days of declaring victory in Mosul, the group’s former capital, where operations lasted between October to July.

Up to 2000 ISIL militants are believed to remain in Tal Afar, Brig. Gen. Yahiya Rasool, the JOC’s spokesperson, said in remarks last week.

The United Nations says more than 30,000 were displaced as operations launched for the enclave.

After Tal Afar, the group’s last enclave in Nineveh province, the Iraqi government is expected to carry out offensives to liberate the few remaining havens in Kirkuk, Anbar and Salahuddin.

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