The Iraqi army has announced the "liberation" of east Mosul, following the collapse of Islamic State defences on the left bank of the Tigris River.

Isolated Islamic State fighters reportedly holding out in a few north-eastern districts would be “cleaned up,” said Brigadier General Sami Al Aradi of the Iraqi Special Operations Forces. “After that we will move on to west Mosul.”

The announcement comes three months after Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) began the battle to retake the city, which has been under the control of militants from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) for more than two-and-a-half years. The speed of the ISF advance increased markedly following a renewed push since Dec 29. </s> Iraqi security forces advance during fighting against Islamic State militants, in western Mosul, Iraq, Monday, March 6, 2017.

BAGHDAD — A senior Iraqi military commander says troops have captured the government complex in western Mosul from the Islamic State group.

The advance comes more than two weeks since the new push started to clear the city's western side of IS.

Lt. Gen. Abdul-Amir Raheed Yar Allah says troops hoisted an Iraqi flag on the buildings in the Dawasa neighborhood on Tuesday, hailing the federal police as "heroes."

Yar Allah commands army operations in Ninevah, where Mosul is the provincial capital.

He says the troops also control the western side of a second bridge across the Tigris River.

U.S.-led airstrikes disabled Mosul's five bridges last year in a bid to isolate the militants. Iraq declared eastern Mosul "fully liberated" last month but the militants have carried out attacks there since then. </s> BAGHDAD — Iraq’s military says government troops are now in “full control” of eastern Mosul after routing Islamic State militants from that part of the northern Iraqi city.

Army Lt. Gen. Talib Shaghati, who commands the Iraqi counter-terrorism forces, says the success of the Iraqi forces is “unprecedented.”

The advance — more than three months since the operation to free Mosul started in October — comes following Iraqi troops’ push over the past days in the last IS-held neighborhoods in Mosul’s east, closing in on the Tigris River that roughly divides the city.

Mosul — Iraq’s second-largest city and the Islamic State group’s last urban stronghold in the country — fell to IS in the summer of 2014, when the militant group captures large swaths of northern and western Iraq. </s> The Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Sunday, (19 February) announced the launch of a ground offensive in western Mosul to drive the Islamic State (Isis) out of the area.

"We announce the start of a new phase in the operation, we are coming to Nineveh to liberate the western side of Mosul. Our forces are beginning the liberation of the citizens from the terror of Daesh [IS]," he added.

The Iraqi air force has reportedly dropped leaflets on western Mosul warning its residents of an impending ground offensive to oust the IS (Daesh) from the area, the Iraqi defence ministry said in a statement, Reuters reported.

The statement said the leaflets "contain instructions for the citizens to get ready to welcome the Iraqi forces that are coming to liberate their areas and to warn the Daesh (Islamic State) members to lay down their weapons and surrender".

At least 650,000 civilians in western Mosul are under siege along with the Isis militants. The US backed Iraqi forces were successful in ousting the terrorist group from the eastern part of Mosul in a battle that came to an end in January and now have all but surrounded the western side.

Meanwhile, the United Nations has warned that the safety of the thousands of civilians trapped in the area is a top priority.

Lise Grande, the UN humanitarian co-ordinator for Iraq told the BBC that it had made the safety of civilians its top priority when the Iraqi forces waged an offensive to take back eastern Mosul.

She added that the Iraqi forces "need to ensure that that humanitarian concept of operations is adhered to, and that all of the parties to the conflict do absolutely everything they can to ensure that civilians survive the battle, and that they live."

"Absolutely nothing is more important going into the campaign to retake western Mosul," Grande said.

According to reports, retaking western Mosul could prove to be a bigger challenge due to its narrow streets. </s> BAGHDAD -- U.S.-backed Iraqi government troops announced Wednesday that they were in "full control" of eastern Mosul after routing Islamic State militants from that part of the northern city, three months after the major operation started.

The achievement was a "big victory," said Iraqi army Lt. Gen. Talib Shaghati, who commands the counterterrorism forces, describing the success of the Iraqi forces as "unprecedented."

Shaghati, who spoke to reporters in the town of Bartella, just east of Mosul, said plans were now being drawn up to retake the western part of the city from the Islamic State, also known as ISIS. He did not elaborate on when that part of the operation would begin.

Wednesday's advance came after Iraqi troops recently intensified their push into the last Islamic State-held neighborhoods in Mosul's eastern sector, closing in on the Tigris River, which roughly divides the city. Stiff resistance by the militants, thousands of civilians being trapped in their houses by the fighting and bad weather had in the past slowed the advances of the troops.

However, skirmishes and clashes continued in some pockets along the Tigris in eastern Mosul, said Iraqi special forces Maj. Ali Hussein, who added that his unit still was pushing into the Ghabat area along the riverbank. Small-arms fire could be heard and at least one civilian was wounded by mortar fire.

Also, some commanders on the ground disputed Shaghati's claim of "full control" of eastern Mosul, with Lt. Gen. Abdul-Amir Raheed Yar Allah saying the eastern side "has not been fully liberated ... and the advance is still continuing."

Yar Allah, who commands army operations in Nineveh, where Mosul is the provincial capital, said the special forces "have done their duty" in eastern Mosul.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi issued a statement, posted on his website, saying "work is underway to liberate" Ghabat and the area housing Saddam Hussein's former presidential palaces in eastern Mosul. He also vowed to liberate the western side of the city.

But the prospect of retaking western Mosul looms heavy on Iraqi forces, despite the support they have from the U.S.-led coalition, as well as Sunni and Shiite volunteer militias. The western half of the city is home to some of Mosul's oldest neighborhoods, with narrow streets packed with buildings that will complicate the urban fight.

So far in the Mosul offensive, Iraq's counterterrorism forces, which are by far the military's most battle-seasoned unit, have done most of the fighting, advancing from east of the city.

Regular Iraqi army troops are pushing from the city's southeast and northern edges, and the federal security forces from farther to the west.

Mosul -- Iraq's second-largest city and the Islamic State group's last urban stronghold in the country -- fell to the Islamic State in the summer of 2014, when the militant group captured large areas of northern and western Iraq.

The operation has also left more than 148,000 people homeless, according to the United Nations. Nearly 12,500 people have been forced to flee their homes just over the past week, the U.N. said.

More than 1 million people were estimated to still be living in Mosul in October, when Iraqi forces opened the operation to retake the city.

Information for this article was contributed by Susannah George of The Associated Press. </s> Iraqi security forces on Wednesday retook control of new areas from Islamic State (IS) terrorists on the outskirts of the city of Tal Afar in Iraq’s northern province of Nineveh, the Iraqi military said.

The Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) forces completely freed the southern part of Kifah neighbourhood at the western edge of Tal Afar after about 24 hours of heavy clashes with the terrorists; Xinhua news agency quoted Lt Gen Abdul-Amir Yarallah from the Joint Operations Command (JOC) as saying.

The federal police forces and the paramilitary Hashd Shaabi units stormed the northern part of Kifah neighbourhood and managed in the afternoon to liberate the area after defeating IS terrorists, Yarallah said.

Also in the day, the Iraqi army’s 9th Armored Division and the paramilitary Hashd Shaabi units liberated al-Tanak neighbourhood on the eastern outskirts of the city and raised the Iraqi flag over some of its buildings, Yarallah added.

On August 20, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, also the commander-in-chief of Iraqi forces, declared the start of an operation to retake control of Tal Afar and nearby areas from IS militants.

“We announce the launch of an operation to liberate Tal Afar. I say to IS, either you surrender or die,” Abadi said.

Tal Afar, some 70 km west of Mosul, is the last IS redoubt in the province of Nineveh. </s> Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi arrived in Mosul on Sunday and congratulated Iraqi armed forces for driving the extremist militant Islamic State (ISIS) group out of its major stronghold in the country.

Iraqi armed forces, backed by a United States-led coalition, were battling ISIS in Mosul for months. The victory marks the end of the battle that left Iraq's second largest city in ruins, killed hundreds of people and displaced almost a million civilians.

Abadi's office said he was visiting "liberated" Mosul to congratulate his "heroic fighters". However, the Prime Minister later suggested he would only declare victory once final pockets of resistance were cleared.

"Victory is certain, and the (IS) remnants are surrounded... and it is just a matter of time for us to announce the great victory to our people," Abadi said in a statement.

The delay "comes out of my respect and support for our... forces who are continuing the clearing operation," he said.

"There are only one or two pockets of Daesh remnants left," and "the major victory is in hand," the premier added, using an Arabic acronym for ISIS.

Iraqi troops are reportedly still battling ISIS militants in some of the last areas of resistance, and could be facing guerrilla attacks for weeks.

The prime minister's office said that Abadi met commanders in Mosul and issued a series of orders on "sustaining victories and eliminating the defeated remnants" of ISIS, as well as "establishing security and stability in the liberated city."

Although most of Mosul has been reclaimed by the Iraqi forces, they still face dangers ahead with ISIS sleeper cells and suicide bombers.

The forces would also need to clear all the houses in the city, which are rigged with explosive traps so that civilians can return to the region.

The battle against ISIS is still a long way to go in Iraq as other cities continue to remain under the group's control. </s> Alwaght- Iraqi forces have completely expelled ISIS terrorists from eastern Mosul, Counter Terrorism Services (CTS) chief Talib Shaghati said on Wednesday.

Lieutenant-General Talib Shaghati said the (CTS), who have spearheaded the three-month-old offensive against ISIS in the northern Iraqi city, had taken control of the eastern bank of the Tigris river that roughly divides the second largest Iraqi city.

Regular army troops were still fighting the terrorist group militants in northeast Mosul, however, according to a military statement.

"Today we celebrate ... the liberation of the eastern bank in Mosul," Shaghati told reporters in the city.

The Iraqi commander said that liberating the western half of the city, which terrorists still fully control, would be an easier task. </s> BAGHDAD – U.S.-backed Iraqi government troops announced on Wednesday they were in “full control” of eastern Mosul, after routing Islamic State militants from that part of the northern city almost exactly three months since the major operation started.

The achievement was a “big victory,” said Iraqi Army Lt. Gen. Talib Shaghati, who commands the counter-terrorism forces, describing the success of the Iraqi forces as “unprecedented.”

Shaghatai, who spoke to reporters in the town of Bartella, just east of Mosul, said plans were now being drawn up to retake the western part of the city. He did not elaborate on when that part of the operation would begin.

Wednesday’s advance came after Iraqi troops over the past days intensified their push into the last IS-held neighbourhoods in Mosul’s eastern sector, closing in on the Tigris River, which roughly divides the city. Stiff resistance by the militants, thousands of civilians being trapped in their houses by the fighting and bad weather had in the past slowed the advances of the troops.

READ MORE: Islamic State militants destroy ruins at ancient Iraqi city of Nimrud

However, skirmishes and clashes continued in some pockets along the Tigris in eastern Mosul, according to Iraqi special forces Maj. Ali Hussein who said his unit was still pushing into the Ghabat area along the river bank. Small arms fire could be heard and at least one civilian was wounded by mortar fire.

Also, some commanders on the ground disputed Shaghati’s claim of “full control” of eastern Mosul, with Lt. Gen. Abdul-Amir Raheed Yar Allah saying the eastern side “has not been fully liberated … and the advance is still continuing.”

READ MORE: Mosul University fully liberated by Iraqi troops, says military

Yar Allah, who commands army operations in Ninevah, where Mosul is the provincial capital, said the special forces “have done their duty” in eastern Mosul.

The prospect of retaking western Mosul looms heavy on Iraqi forces, despite all the support they have by the U.S.-led coalition, and Sunni and Shiite volunteer militias. The western half of the city is home to some of Mosul’s oldest neighbourhoods, with narrow streets packed with buildings that will further complicate the urban fight.

So far in the Mosul offensive, Iraq’s counterterrorism forces, which are by far the military’s most battle seasoned unit, have done most of the fighting, advancing from east of the city.

Regular Iraqi army troops are pushing from the city’s southeast and northern edges, and the federal security forces from farther to the west.

Mosul – Iraq’s second-largest city and the Islamic State group’s last urban stronghold in the country – fell to IS in the summer of 2014, when the militant group captures large swaths of northern and western Iraq.

The operation has also left more than 148,000 people homeless, according to the United Nations. Nearly 12,500 people have been forced to flee their homes just over the past week, the U.N. said.

More than 1 million people were estimated to still be living in Mosul in October, when Iraqi forces launched the operation to retake the city.
The Iraqi Army announces the liberation of the eastern part of Mosul following the collapse of ISIL defenses.