The command spokesman, Brigadier General Yahya Rasoul , noted that the operations in west Mosul have been slow because ISIS terrorist group have been using the civilians there as human shields.
“Military operations in Mosul’s right back have been cautiously going on in order to prevent ISIS from using the civilians as human shields.”
Mosul, now the last Iraqi city in which ISIS still holds significant territory, is split by the Tigris River, with the east side referred to as the left bank and the west as the right.
“Al-Hadbaa minaret has been surrounded (by Iraqi forces), but it is known that it lies in a crowded residential area in the old city’s center,” Rasoul said, referring to the minaret in the Great Mosqiue of Al-Nuri.
In this context the Iraqi general said that the Iraqi forces are relying on infantry forces, in order to avoid civilian casualties.
Meanwhile, Rasoul said that the military operations in west Mosul are going on according to the command’s plan.
“We are not in rush. It is only a matter of time, especially that the terrorist organization has started to collapse,” the Iraqi general said, according to Sumaria News Iraqi channel.
On the other hand, the spokesman pointed out that Iraqi forces have been opening humanitarian corridors for civilians to flee west Mosul.
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