Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
RAF blitz ends ISIS last stand in Mosul
But Minister warns ‘more to be done’
UK warplanes targeted Islamic State fighters in the final moments before Iraqi forces finally liberated Mosul – following eight months of intense fighting.
As Iraqi PM Haider al-abadi announced victory at the weekend, fighting was still raging in the old town area, where dozens of jihadis were making a desperate laststand. Mosul lies in ruins after the bloodiest urban warfare the world has seen in decades.
British RAF Typhoon and Tornado fighter-bombers swooped to provide vital close airsupport to Iraqi ground troops who were driving back a final IS counter-attack.
Details of the RAF air-strikes emerged yesterday as Defence Secretary Michael Fallon warned there is still “more work to be done” in the battle to smash IS. He said: “The military campaign is not over with the fall of Mosul.
“There remain other towns... in Nineveh province and there are remnants of IS coalescing around the Middle Euphrates River Valley, so there is still more work to be done.”
In a statement, the Ministry of Defence revealed: “Over the weekend, RAF aircraft provided very close support to Iraqi troops as they fought to clear a cluster of Is-held buildings near to the west bank of the Tigris, the last significant pocket of terrorist control in Mosul. “Two mixed pairs of Tornados and Typhoons assisted the Iraqis as they fought at very close quarters in Mosul.” Mr Fallon added that IS had to be tackled with more than just military action, including targeting its finances, senior leadership and online propaganda. He said: “The military campaign has to be combined and seen as part of a broader coalition campaign to undermine this evil organisation.”