Iraq forces launch push to retake town south of Mosul

KIRKUK, Iraq: Iraqi special forces led an operation on Tuesday aimed at retaking the jihadist-held town of Qayyarah, a key staging base for operations to attack Mosul, military sources said.

Qayyarah lies on the western bank of the Tigris river, about 60 kilometres ( 35 miles) south of Mosul, the Islamic State group’s last major urban stronghold in Iraq.

With the clock ticking down on what Iraq expects to be its biggest anti-IS operation yet, the UN warned of population displacement on a scale not seen in years.

“The operation started at dawn with the participation of CounterTerrorism Service (CTS) and army forces,” Brigadier General Firas Bashar told AFP.

US-led coalition aircraft provided support, said Bashar, the spokesman for the operations command in Nineveh, the province in which Qayyarah and Mosul are located.

“The operation is ongoing and currently achieving its goals,” CTS spokesman Sabah al-Noman said.

“Qayyarah will be cleared and the operation wrapped up quickly, bolstering our plans... for the final battle to liberate Mosul,” he told AFP.

He said Iraqi forces had been working with armed residents inside the town for this offensive, a rare occurrence.

“There has been coordination with groups of armed residents inside,” Noman said, declining to provide further details. — AFP