The Iraqi forces (ISF) faced a mixture of continued advances
and setbacks in its fighting in eastern Mosul. On the positive side, the Golden
Division supported by a unit from the 16th Division freed Noor, Muthanna and Siha.
That marked the 55th neighborhood reached so far in the city. The 9th
Division and a SWAT unit and the Golden Division also attacked Masarif
and Salam, both
of which were freed twice before. On the negative side, the 9th
Division made a thrust into southeast Mosul reaching the Salam Hospital in the
Wahda neighborhood on December
6. It appeared that the ISF was trying to make a pincer movement and
surround the central section of the Left Coast of the city. On December 7 the
Islamic State launched a determined counterattack and drove the ISF out of the
hospital. An armored unit and troops from the Golden Division had to be sent in
to rescue the soldiers stuck in the hospital and secure their escape. An
officer told Reuters that it appeared the insurgents let them into the
neighborhood so that they could be ambushed. In the process the 9th
Division had to withdraw
from the Wahda and Sumer areas. There is still no movement on the northern and
southern fronts. The previous two days the southern neighborhoods were shelled,
but there was no such news on December 7. Instead, Al
Mada reported that the army is still waiting for the order to move out and
attack the Mosul airport.
In the west the Hashd attacked the town of Tal Faris.
It has also had a hard
time controlling the Tal Afar to Mosul road. The Hashd units are still
waiting for the army and police to organize a force to take Tal Afar itself. Until
then the Hashd are trying to hold the roads and clearing the towns in the area.
Iraq Oil Report in its daily journal, “Inside
Mosul” noted that IS is forcing civilians from the Bakr, Mithaq and Tamim
neighborhoods into the western side of the city. The militants were threatening
to kill people if they didn’t leave. They are likely to be used as human
shields.
Finally, Reuters
ran a story that Iran, Russia and France played a role in the Mosul campaign
plan. Originally, the northern, eastern, and southern sides of Mosul were to be
taken leaving an escape route to the west to Syria for civilians and IS
fighters to flee. A similar tactic was used in previous sieges in Iraq. Tehran,
Moscow and Paris objected. The first two did not want Islamic State men moving
into Syria where they could be used to fight the Assad government, which the
two countries support. France on the other hand, wanted to eliminate as many IS
members as possible in Mosul fearing future terrorist attacks. As a result of
this lobbying the Hashd were sent west to cut off Mosul from all sides. A
negative consequence of this revision is that there are hundreds of thousands
of civilians trapped within the city, which has greatly complicated the
fighting as they have been used as human shields, and have stopped the ISF from
using its heavy firepower. It has also left IS with no other choice but to
fight to the death as few can expect to escape if they tried.
SOURCES
Bas News, "Iraqi Forces Approaching Center of Mosul,"
12/7/16
- "Iraqi Forces Retake Two More Neighborhoods Eastern
Mosul," 12/6/16
Evans, Dominic, Chmaytelli, Maher and Markey, Patrick, “How
Iran closed the Mosul ‘horseshoe’ and changed Iraq war,” Reuters, 12/7/16
Al Forat, "Popular Mobilization Forces initiate attack on the
southern village of Tal Faris western Mosul," 12/7/16
Iraq Oil Report, "Inside
Mosul, Dec. 7, 2016," 12/7/16
- "Inside Mosul: Nov. 6, 2016," 11/6/16
- "Inside Mosul, Nov. 25, 2016," 11/25/16
Al Mada, “Revision to the plan to liberate Mosul and Tal
Afar from Daesh,” 12/7/16
Mostafa, Mohamed, “Iraqi troops withdraw as ISIS attacks
leave deaths in Mosul,” Iraqi News, 12/7/16
Rasheed, Ahmed, “Islamic State attacks Iraqi soldiers in
Mosul,” Reuters, 12/7/16
Rojkan, Mira, "Joint Forces Continue to Advance, Liberating
More Areas in Mosul," Bas News, 12/4/16
Xinhua, "Iraqi forces gain ground, fight heavy clashes with
IS militants in Mosul," 11/29/16
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