Iraqi forces attack ISIS in eastern Mosul
Troops converge from several fronts, push north from eastern foothold
Iraqi special forces pushed deeper into the northern city of Mosul on Wednesday, backed by airstrikes but under attack by rockets and suicide bombers from ISIS.
Troops have established a foothold in the city's east, and drove northward into the Tahrir neighbourhood, where families left their houses to flee the fighting. Mortars from ISIS-held territory wounded at least five children trying to flee the fighting, who were evacuated by the troops.
Brig.-Gen. Haider Fadhil said the special forces now control 70 per cent of the district, which is still full of most of its residents. The army is trying to get them out of the area.
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Fadhil said the troops have killed dozens of militants, and are advancing carefully to try spare civilians from getting caught in the crossfire.
Meanwhile, fighters with an influential Shia militia pushed deeper into areas west of the city, according to a spokesman.
Jaafar al-Husseini of the Hezbollah Brigades said fierce clashes were underway Wednesday afternoon at the perimeter of the Tal Afar military airport. He did not elaborate.
Artillery and airstrikes from the U.S.-led coalition supported the advance, sending plumes of smoke into the air over the city.
Iraqi troops are converging from several fronts on Mosul, the country's second largest city and the last major ISIS holdout in Iraq. The special forces have been the tip of the spear, driving the furthest into the city itself, but they are still fighting over neighbourhoods in its eastern edges.
The offensive to drive the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria out the northern city began on Oct. 17. After swift initial gains into the suburbs, progress has slowed as troops move into more built-up areas of the city, still home to more than one million civilians.
Special forces have captured a foothold in the east, and have been advancing slowly over the past week to avoid casualties and civilian deaths as ISIS fighters emerge to attack from the dense, urban landscape, often with armour-plated suicide car bombs.
