Iraqi Forces Recapture 90% of Last IS-held Area in Mosul

Iraqi forces have recaptured 90 percent of al-Maidan neighbourhood, the last bastion of Islamic State (IS) militants in the Old City district in west Mosul.

"The anti-terrorism forces have taken control of most of the important locations and strategic sites in al-Maidan," Major Ali Mohsen from Counterterrorism forces told BasNews on Wednesday.

The troops also discovered and seized weapons stores, IS headquarters as well as detention centers containing prisoners, he said.

"Our forces, while combing the liberated areas of Maidan, freed 40 prisoners inside one of the tunnels dug by the organization, and were released and transferred to the headquarters of the Counterterrorism forces to be handed over later to their families,” said Major Mohsen, adding that the detainees were in very tragic and unstable conditions as a result of extreme hunger and lack of drinking water.

He noted that the complete liberation of Maidan neighbourhood and the banks of the Tigris River will be announced within the next few hours.

Meanwhile, the commander of the Nineveh operations Lieutenant General Abdul Amir Rasheed Yarallah announced on Wednesday the liberation of two new areas in last IS stronghold of Old City. He said the army have managed to liberate the areas of Khatouniya and al-Tawalib in the Old City of Mosul.

Iraqi counterterrorism forces began to storm on Tuesday the last remaining neighborhoods in the Old City district of Mosul after being completely surrounded.

"Our forces managed to break into the al-Maidan, al-Kwazin and al-Qali'at, located on the banks of the Tigris in the middle of the Old City district after they were completely surrounded,” Colonel Yunus al-Sharifi from Counterterrorism Forces told BasNews on Tuesday.


https://www.basnews.com/index.php/en/news/iraq/361808