Iraq slows advance on last IS pocket in Mosul packed with civilians

Source: Reuters

Iraqi forces slowed their advance on Tuesday through the last streets in Mosul controlled by Islamic State where militants and civilians are packed in densely together, a commander said.

While Iraqi commanders predicted final victory in Mosul this week, U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces announced they had begun an assault on Islamic State's Syrian redoubt in the Old City of Raqqa.

The Iraqi military has pushed insurgents into a shrinking rectangle no more than 300 by 500 meters beside the Tigris river in Mosul; but the resistance has been fierce.

The Rapid Response Division, an elite Interior Ministry unit, called in air strikes just 50 meters away from their targets, and the fighting got close enough at one point for the militants to toss a hand grenade at the troops.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-iraq-mosul-idUSKBN19P1HK

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I know our attention is elsewhere, but there could be a horrendous bloodbath of civilians about to occur.