Mosul liberated as Daesh faces total defeat in Iraq

Articolo tratto da Gulf News

Coalition commander says toughest urban warfare in his 34 years of service

ReutersIraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi (R) is pictured in Mosul Iraq, July 9, 2017. Iraqi Prime Minister Media Office/Handout via REUTERS

Mosul: Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi arrived in Mosul to declare it liberated from Daesh, three years after the city’s abrupt fall to the terrorists alerted the world to the group’s growing strength, territorial ambitions and barbarity.

Al Abadi congratulated the Iraqi people and fighters on a “great victory” after the last pockets under Daesh control were retaken, according to a tweet from his media office.

The campaign to free Mosul from Daesh entered its final phase in the narrow streets of the Old City mid-June, eight months after thousands of Iraqi troops and Kurdish fighters backed by US-led air strikes began their offensive. Lieutenant General Stephen Townsend, commander of the coalition, has described it as the toughest urban warfare he has seen in 34 years of service.

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