Life after the Islamic State in Mosul. Toys were banned by
the group, but now for sale in east Mosul (The Sun)
April 29 the Joint Operations Command announced that there was a
small advance in the Old City. The Federal Police and Rapid Reaction Division
moved from 300 to 200 meters within the Grand Mosque in the district. In a rare
occurrence, the Iraqi forces announced losses in the day’s fighting. 14 Federal
Police were killed,
and 20 wounded by a series of suicide bombers. Four
more were killed by sniper fire. The Golden Division and police were also
attempting to take the Zinjali neighborhood, which would further surround the
Old City. The police have been assaulting the Old City for nearly two months.
The fight has been very difficult sometimes involving room to room combat. The
main job of the police has been to hold down the Islamic State, while the
Golden Division took the center of the city. A member of the Ninewa council
told Al
Mada that strategy remains in place to bypass the district, and seize the
rest of west Mosul.
The chief of staff of the Iraqi army, General Othman
al-Ghanmi believes
that all of Mosul will be freed in three weeks before Ramadan. It took nearly
three months to take roughly 60% of the city, so that estimate may be too
optimistic.
An American soldier was killed by an
IED outside of Mosul. No further details were revealed. The Trump
administration has allowed U.S. Special Forces to be forward deployed with the
Iraqis and are operating inside and out of Mosul. A few Americans have been
killed and wounded in Iraq since 2014 when they were re-deployed to the country
to fight the Islamic State.
Al
Mada reported there may be a split between Prime Minister Haider Abadi and
the Hashd. Recently those forces moved from Tal Afar towards the Syrian border,
seizing the Hatra district. The premier said nothing about this gain, when he
regularly makes remarks about the latest victories. Al Mada speculated this was
because the army’s 15th Division was supposed to accompany the
Hashd, but didn’t. There have been differences between the Hashd and Baghdad
before. The former has been increasingly frustrated by the fact that Abadi has
not allowed them to take Tal Afar because of Turkish complaints. Still, the
Hashd regularly coordinate with the Iraqi security forces, so more information
will have to be reported to determine what happened.
There has been new displacement from the
Tal Afar district. More than 6,000 have left the area since April 21. A new
section of the Hamam al-Alil 2 camp has also opened. All the camps south of
Mosul were either at capacity or overflowing, so this new addition was welcomed.
The United Nations is building another camp in the area as well.
SOURCES
AIN, “Army chief confirms the liberation of West Mosul
before Ramadan,” 4/28/17
Baghdad Post, “30 ISIS terrorists killed near Mosul’s Great
Nuri Mosque,” 4/29/17
-
"Iraqi warplanes kill 15 civilians in airstrikes in Mosul," 4/28/17
-
"Sniper kills four police personnel in Mosul," 4/29/17
Knox, Patrick, “Hope In Hell, Life slowly returns to normal
in Mosul as Iraqi forces pull down chilling ISIS posters and re-open toy shops
after they were banned by fanatics,” The Sun, 4/29/17
Al Mada, “Commander in Chief remains silent despite days
after the liberation of Hatra,” 4/29/17
New Sabah, “Anti-Terrorism Forces four districts separate
completing the liberation of West Mosul,” 4/28/17
- “The joint forces reach 200 meters from the Nuri Grand
Mosque,” 4/29/17
Rojkan,
Mira, "At Least 14 Iraqi Police Officers Killed in IS Suicide Attack in
West Mosul," Bas News, 4/29/17
Rudaw,
"US servicemen killed in "explosive device blast" in
Mosul," 4/29/17
Al Sumaria, “The federal police announced the killing of 30
terrorists and the destruction of 12 targets in the vicinity of Al-Nuri Mosque
in Mosul,” 4/29/17
UN High Commissioner for Refugees, “Iraq Situation: UNHCR
Flash Update – 27 April 2017,” 4/27/17
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