Sporadic clashes continue in Mosul
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mosul — Sporadic clashes continued on Tuesday in Mosul, a day after Iraq’s prime minister declared “total victory” over the Daesh group and at least one airstrike hit the Old City neighbourhood that was the scene of the fierce battle’s final days.
A plume of smoke rose into the air from the strike as Daesh mortar shells landed near Iraqi positions and heavy gunfire could be heard on the western edge of the Old City.
The developments underscored the dangers still posed by the militants after Iraqi forces announced they retook full control of Mosul, the country’s second-largest city, three years after it was seized by extremists bent on building a global caliphate.
Amnesty International warned in a report released on Tuesday that the conflict in Mosul has created a “civilian catastrophe,” with the extremists carrying out forced displacement, summary killings and using civilians as human shields.
The report also detailed violations by Iraqi forces and the US-led coalition. “The scale and gravity of the loss of civilian lives during the military operation to retake Mosul must immediately be publicly acknowledged at the highest levels of government in Iraq and states that are part of the United Statesled coalition,” said Lynn Maalouf, the research director for Mideast at Amnesty.
The report, which covers the first five months of this year, noted how Daesh fighters moved civilians with them around the city, preventing them from escaping, creating battle spaces with dense civilian populations while “Iraqi forces and the US-led coalition failed to adapt their tactics.” —