Iraqi forces fight to clear last IS jihadists from Mosul

Iraqi forces are engaged in “heavy” fighting with the Islamic State group as they battle to clear the last jihadist-held pockets in Mosul’s Old City, a senior commander says.

Lieutenant General Sami al-Aridhi, a senior commander in the elite Counter-Terrorism Service, says the jihadist-held territory had been reduced to an area of the Old City of about 200 by 100 meters (yards).

“They do not accept to surrender,” Aridhi tells AFP. “They say in a loud voice: ‘We will not surrender, we want to die.'”

But “operations are in their final stages,” and “it is likely that (the fighting) will end today,” he adds.

Aridhi says his forces had information that there were between 3,000 and 4,000 civilians in the small area still under jihadist control but that could not be independently confirmed.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi visited Mosul yesterday to hail his forces for securing victory in the city but said he was holding off on making a formal announcement of victory until the last IS resistance was eliminated.

— AFP