Iraqi special forces advance on the Islamic State-held city of Mosul from the east, taking heavy fire but entering the last village before the city limits and clearing a path that is followed by army units.
Armored vehicles, including Abrams tanks, draw mortar and small arms fire as they move on the village of Bazwaya in the dawn assault, while allied artillery and airstrikes hit IS positions.
Car bombers are trying to stop the advance, but the troops, just 2 miles (3 kilometers) from Mosul’s eastern outskirts, aim to enter it later in the day, said Brig. Gen. Haider Fadhil. The army said another unit, its ninth division, had moved up toward Mosul and was now approximately three miles from its eastern outskirts.
Shiite fighters from the Hashed al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization) advance towards the Iraqi village of Salmani, south of Mosul, on October 30, 2016 during the ongoing battle to liberate the city from Islamic State jihadists. (AFP PHOTO/AHMAD AL-RUBAYE
State television describes the operation as a “battle of honor” to liberate the city, captured by IS from a superior yet neglected Iraqi force in 2014. The US military estimates IS has 3,000 to 5,000 fighters inside Mosul and another 1,500-2,500 in the city’s outer defensive belt.
Some residents are hanging white flags on buildings and from windows in a sign they will not resist the government troops, says Maj. Salam al-Obeidi, a member of the special forces operation in Bazwaya. He says troops are requesting residents stay inside their homes as forces travel on the streets, guarding against potential suicide bombers.
— AP
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