Formidable challenges await Iraqi forces on Mosulmission
Islamic State has elaborate defenses
Iraq’s massive military operation to liberate Mosul has met its limited objectives in its first two days, but themost difficult fighting lies ahead. When soldiers enter the city, they’ll encounter layers of deadly booby traps and Islamic State militants willing to fight to the death.
The offensive is an unprecedented challenge for Iraq’s reconstituted army — the largest, most complex operation launched since Islamic State militants swept into Iraq two years ago and routed a national military that quickly collapsed.
Tuesday, the Iraqi army pressed ahead, while Kurdish allies paused after capturing villages east of the city. Those victories came after fighting that involved airstrikes, heavy artillery and Islamic State car bombs.
Col. John Dorrian, a spokesman for the U. S.- led coalition supporting the offensive, said Iraqi troops made “excellent progress.” He said some units reached their objectives ahead of schedule after encountering “light to moderate” resistance.
The forces hadn’t entered the city. Kurdish forces, called peshmerga, advanced to within about 20 miles of the eastern edge ofMosul.
Iraq’s commanders direct a dizzying array of forces. At the core of the offensive are 12 U. S.- trained Iraqi and Kurdish brigades, numbering about 30,000 troops. The conventional forces are part of a larger, more diverse force, including Shiite militias, Sunni tribal and self- defense units, police commandos and elite counterterrorism units.
“I’mnot sure they’ve shown the capability to command something this complex,” said Michael Barbero, a retired Army lieutenant general who served three tours in Iraq. “We’ll see.”
The tactics Iraqi units used in recent successful battles against the Islamic State were fairly straightforward. Conventional forces seized the perimeter of a city, allowing elite counterterrorism troops and police commandos to enter and engage in close fighting to clear the militants from the center.
Those forces experienced in urban fighting played a prominent role this year in driving militants from Fallujah and Ramadi.
Getting commandos into the heart of Mosul will be tougher than in Ramadi and Fallujah. Mosul is amuch larger city, and the Islamic State has prepared more extensive defenses. Breaching them will be difficult, especially as Iraqi forces will probably come under fire as they try to clear lanes through minefields.
The United States assists with advisers, who have been placed at unit headquarters, generally away from direct combat, and with airstrikes that have weakened Islamic State fighters inside the city. In the past month, the U. S.- led coalition has conducted about 70 airstrikes around the city.
U. S. forces have trained Iraqis in skills needed to breach minefields and clear improvised explosives and to command such a disparate force.
As the Iraqis enter Mosul and the fighting intensifies, Iraqi junior commanders will make the key decisions with little American assistance. Airstrikes become more difficult as the Iraqis close in on the militants in a city packed with a civilian population of more than 1million.
After the fighting ends, Iraq’s government said, Shiite militias and Kurdish forces participating in the offensive will remain outside the city to avoid igniting sectarian tensions inside Mosul, a predominantly Sunni city.
“The military challenge is going to be huge, but the humanitarian and political challenges will be just as formidable,” Barbero said.