Islamic State makes desperate stand in Mosul, commanders say

[webfact]

Islamic State makes desperate stand in Mosul, commanders say

 

Smoke rises from an air strike during fighting with Islamic State militants in the Old City of Mosul, Iraq July 6, 2017. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad

 

MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - Islamic State fighters holding out in Mosul on a strip of land along the Tigris River are increasingly using suicide bombers in a desperate attempt to slow the steady advance of Iraqi forces, military commanders said on Thursday.

 

Iraqi forces pushing towards the al-Maydan and al-Shareen districts in the northern Iraqi city broke the militants' defences and have reached within 200 metres (yards) of the riverbank.

 

But they encountered stiff resistance from an estimated few hundred militants lodged among thousands of civilians in the Old City's maze of alleyways, particularly from foreign suicide bombers, Iraqi commanders said.

 

The military has predicted final victory this week after a grinding eight-month assault to oust Islamic State from the once two-million-strong city.

 

Mosul is by far the largest city ruled by Islamic State. It was here, three years ago, that the group declared the founding of its "caliphate" over parts of Iraq and neighbouring Syria.

 

Lieutenant General Sami Aridhi of the elite counter-terrorism service said Islamic State fighters were increasingly detonating explosives among civilians fleeing towards security forces and had even resorted to using women suicide bombers.

 

"They have begun to wait for the troops to reach them and then blow themselves up. They can't do any more than that," he told state television.

 

"They surge forward just to obstruct the troops, not to hold land or retain any other positions because, God willing, their end is clear to everyone and they are convinced that this is their end," he said.

 

Once Mosul has gone, Islamic State's territory in Iraq will be limited to areas west and south of the city where some tens of thousands of civilians live, and it is expected to keep up asymmetric attacks across the country.

 

LAST 250 SQUARE METRES

 

Iraqi forces have reduced the territory under Islamic State control to 250 square metres, a senior official in the international coalition supporting Iraqi forces told Reuters.

 

"It has been a tough fight but we anticipated that right throughout this campaign because you’re looking at a dispersed, disintegrated and demoralised enemy in those last pockets of Mosul," said New Zealand Army Brigadier Hugh McAslan.

 

"Throughout the last couple of weeks, we've seen exploitation of the population and an increase of atrocities against the local population as they look to flee a cruel and brutal occupation."

 

Air strikes continued to rain down just beyond the frontline on Thursday, and wounded soldiers, some displaying blast wounds, were evacuated.

 

Civilians interviewed on state TV said they had fled al-Maydan district, which is one of a handful of districts along the riverbank still in Islamic State hands.

 

McAslan said it was increasingly difficult to distinguish between fighters and local residents, whom Islamic State had coerced into taking up arms.

 

Prime Minister Haider Abadi declared the end of Islamic State's "state of falsehood" a week ago, after security forces took Mosul's medieval Grand al-Nuri mosque.

 

Months of grinding urban warfare have displaced 900,000 people, about half the city's pre-war population, and killed thousands, according to aid organisations.

 

The United Nations predicts it will cost more than $1 billion to repair basic infrastructure in Mosul, while Iraq's Kurdish leader said on Thursday in a Reuters interview that the Baghdad government had failed to prepare a post-battle political, security and governance plan.

 

The offensive has damaged thousands of structures in Mosul's Old City and destroyed nearly 500 buildings, satellite imagery released by the United Nations on Thursday showed.

 

In some of the worst affected areas, almost no buildings appear to have escaped damage, and city's dense construction means the extent of the destruction might be underestimated, the U.N. said. More damage is expected before the fighting ends.

 

(Reporting By Stephen Kalin; Editing by Richard Balmforth and Gareth Jones, Larry King)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-07-07

[darksidedog]

It is becoming truer every day that IS are indeed a complete bunch of total losers. The caliphate is over and if they want to die to the last man, I and many others will be happy for them to do so. It will be like seeing the back of a nasty pestilence.

[lvr181]

Such a pity that these terrorists have to be killed - thus fulfilling their wishes to die as martyrs. Captured, tortured, humiliated and lifetime solitary confinement would be a better punishment. And 'to hell' with the do gooders of this world.

[redbarron]

4 hours ago, lvr181 said:

Such a pity that these terrorists have to be killed - thus fulfilling their wishes to die as martyrs. Captured, tortured, humiliated and lifetime solitary confinement would be a better punishment. And 'to hell' with the do gooders of this world.

 

Why would you want to punish taxpayers who will have to pay to keep them alive? And why do you say "to hell with the do gooders"? You sound a lot like a member of ISIS. Two wrongs don't make a right . . .

[Stargeezr]

Keep shooting them and bombing them until thay are all killed, and Good Riddance!  ISIL,  should only be a memory, then go to work on all the rest of the terrorist groups until they are all destroyed and gone

Geezer

[lvr181]

18 hours ago, redbarron said:

 

Why would you want to punish taxpayers who will have to pay to keep them alive? And why do you say "to hell with the do gooders"? You sound a lot like a member of ISIS. Two wrongs don't make a right . . .

I do  not give a flying F what the do gooders may say about "rights" of  terrorists, prisoners or otherwise. Heard of live by the sword, die by the sword? But in this case these people want death as it is considered their martyrdom - don't give them that satisfaction! If you do then they and their followers consider they have "won". Is that what you want? Punish taxpayers? Are you real? I am not talking about holding them in some modern day jail with all the home comforts! A simple enclosure open to the elements of the weather, let them catch the rain, throw them some stale bread and let them rot whilst they contemplate the terrible havoc thy wrought on others. Get the picture? Yes, I am a hardliner.

And your solution is (not forgetting that 'two wrongs don't make a right")?

Edited July 8, 2017 by lvr181
correction

[Credo]

I don't know any 'do-gooders' who are talking about the 'rights' of ISIS fighters, and I know a lot of 'do-gooders'.   They are in Iraq and the laws of Iraq prevail and whether they are killed in fighting or executed later, their days are numbered.   

 

The 'do-gooders' that you seem to be referring to do care about the civilian population caught in the middle.   They are the ones that are of concern in Syria as well.

 

For both sides, it's open season on military personnel.   That's the rules.   

[Scott]

Off-topic posts removed.  

[Flustered]

It breaks my heart to see what has happened to Mosul. It seems impossible that followers of the same religion can destroy what their fellow Muslims have built.

 

I spent nearly a year in Mosul during and after the Sadam reign. After the overthrow the city was trying to recover and we did all we could to help such as installing oversized generators in the hospitals where we had base stations so that they could have power as well. At every site, we installed extra power so that the locals could make use of this and worked with the locals at every opportunity. 

 

I used to love eating the rotisserie chicken, beans and bread which were a speciality in Mosul. We spent a total of 12 weeks installing a city wide GSM network including the main switch at their central exchange.

 

All of this is completely destroyed in the name of ISIS interpretation of Islam.

 

It was not easy in Mosul with everyone mistrusting each other and you never knew where the next car bomb or attack on expat civilian workers would come from. You simply never knew who you could trust. I was very lucky in having a good understanding of Arabic, a friendly Iman and a very street wise Kurdish assistant.

 

I will always remember Mosul for it's beauty, even the Palace where the Americans made their headquarters and we scrounged semi decent food (if hot dogs and hamburgers can be considered decent food). Now it is all gone, destroyed in the name of the religion that built it.

 

 

[lvr181]

On 7/9/2017 at 2:24 AM, Credo said:

I don't know any 'do-gooders' who are talking about the 'rights' of ISIS fighters, and I know a lot of 'do-gooders'.   They are in Iraq and the laws of Iraq prevail and whether they are killed in fighting or executed later, their days are numbered.   

 

The 'do-gooders' that you seem to be referring to do care about the civilian population caught in the middle.   They are the ones that are of concern in Syria as well.

 

For both sides, it's open season on military personnel.   That's the rules.   

Yes there are those who care about the civilian 'collateral damage' and all power to them.

They are not the do gooders who I refer to. Don't waste the taxpayers money in giving the 'captured terrorist' a trial and a comfortable prison either.

 

As far as "For both sides, it's open season on military personnel.   That's the rules."

Bulls hit - these terrorists/terrorism do NOT recognise 'those rules'! Where were the military personnel in the London, Paris and other places that terrorists attacked in recent times? In the course of battle the more dead terrorists the better, but for those who are not killed then do not give them the death that their martyrdom rewards them with either!