Iraqi forces close in on IS redoubt in Mosul after declaring end of caliphate
U.S.-backed Iraqi forces attacked Islamic State's remaining redoubt in Mosul's Old City on Friday, a day after hailing the end of the insurgents' self-declared caliphate with the capture of an historic mosque that symbolized their power. Dozens of civilians, mostly women and children, fled across the frontline toward the troops as bullets whizzed through the […]Stephen Kalin reports for Reuters:
U.S.-backed Iraqi forces attacked Islamic State's remaining redoubt in Mosul's Old City on Friday, a day after hailing the end of the insurgents' self-declared caliphate with the capture of an historic mosque that symbolized their power.
Dozens of civilians, mostly women and children, fled across the frontline toward the troops as bullets whizzed through the air. They were thirsty and tired, and some had been wounded.
Commanders of Iraq's Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) cautioned that with the mostly non-Iraqi IS militants dug in among thousands of civilians and likely to fight to the death, the battle ahead remained challenging.
