Mosul and Raqqa will be retaken

Islamic State’s ‘caliphate’ crumbling as forces retake cities in Iraq and Syria, says U.S. military

CAMP TAJI, Iraq — Forces fighting the Islamic State group should be able to retake the Islamic State (IS) held cities of Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria within the next six months, according to the top U.S. commander in Iraq.

On a tour north of Baghdad, Iraq on Wednesday, U.S. army Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend said “within the next six months I think we’ll see both (the Mosul and Raqqa campaigns) conclude.”

Townsend also said he expected the fight for Mosul’s western half to begin in days.

Iraqi forces have retaken about half of Mosul — the country’s second largest city — since the operation was officially launched in October, following more than two years of coalition-led anti-IS operations around Iraq clearing supply lines and partially isolating the city. Last month Iraqi forces declared Mosul’s east “fully liberated” and have since largely paused the fight.

Townsend, who heads the U.S.-led coalition against the radical Islamic group, said Iraq’s military is still in the process of putting forces into place ahead of the push into western Mosul, but predicted operations would begin “in the next few days.”

Closely backed by U.S.-led coalition air power, Iraqi ground forces faced months of gruelling urban combat in Mosul that at times brought the front lines to a standstill for weeks. But the pace of operations increased as Iraqi forces closed in on the Tigris River which roughly divides the city.

Townsend credited the quicker progress with better co-ordination and “lessons learned” on the part of Iraqi forces. But on the ground inside Mosul, Iraqi troops said as they neared the Tigris, Islamic State fighters launched fewer car bombs and largely fled their advances — unlike the heavy resistance they faced in the first few weeks of combat inside the city.

Townsend said he expects t the fight for western Mosul will pose a particular challenge for Iraqi forces due to the older neighbourhoods and narrower streets.

“It will be a more difficult fight, more constricted,” he said.

At times during the Mosul fight, Iraqi forces experienced relatively high casualty rates among some of their most elite and well-trained fighters. Iraqi medics inside Mosul said during some of the heaviest fighting, Iraq’s special forces were suffering around 20 casualties — both deaths and serious injuries — a day. Townsend said these high attrition rates were “a concern,” but he didn’t believe they would hamper the forces moving forward.

In Raqqa, significant ground military operations against IS have barely begun. The coalition has been targeting IS in the area for more than two years and U.S.backed Kurdish-led fighters have been on the offensive in nearby areas, mostly north of the city, retaking surrounding villages.