ISIS deploys female snipers in western Mosul
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) The Islamic State has begun deploying women snipers to hold off advancing Iraqi troops in some areas of western Mosul, while exhibiting fierce resistance at one district.
Security sources have been quoted saying snipers from IS’s notorious “al-Khansaa” women battalion had been deployed above tall buildings to shoot at security troops, but did not name the exact districts where the step was taken.
Meanwhile, Anadolu Agency quoted security commanders saying that IS fighters were fighting back fiercely at al-Yarmouk district, where intense battles between the group and security forces have been undergoing over the past few days. They added that battles left casualties on both sides.
Brig. Gen. Mostafa al-Khazraji, from the Interior Ministry’s Rapid Response forces, told the agency that IS launched three booby-trapped cars towards security forces at Yarmouk, leaving three members dead and a few others wounded.
He said the suicide attacks were followed by gun and mortar assaults, forcing troops to retreat to the outskirts of Yarmouk waiting for a aerial intervention that would pave the way for a fresh ground invasion.
Meanwhile, 32 IS members and eight security troopers were killed in an attack on Federal Police and Rapid Response troops in Orouba region, southwest of Mosul, Lt. Dergham Khafaji todl Anadolu Agency. He added that the fighters were attempting to tap into bad weather to carry out the attack which lasted for more than three consecutive hours.
Three other officers were killed in a drone attack by IS on a military deployment near the Nineveh Governorate building in central Mosul, Maj. Alaa al-Zahri, from the Rapid Response force, told Anadolu Agency.
Iraqi government forces retook eastern Mosul from IS in January, and launched an offensive mid February to retake the west, where security commanders have said they had taken over 60 percent of territory.
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ISIS families attacked in Anbar
Hiit (IraqiNews.com) Unknown attackers threw sound bombs at houses owned by families of Islamic State fighters in western Anbar, according to local sources.
Alsumaria News quoted the sources saying that the unidentified attackers hurled the grenades late Sunday at houses in the city of Hiit belonging to locals whose sons had joined the extremist militant group.
No casualties or material damages resulted from the attack, according to the source.
Local fury against families of IS members had prompted officials at the city to call for evacuating those families to prevent potential actions of violence.
Islamic State militants took over large areas of Iraq and neighboring Syria in 2014 to proclaim an “Islamic Caliphate”. Since then, the group executed hundreds of Iraqis for violating its strict religious codes, collaborating with security and attempting to flee areas under its control.
The Iraqi government says more than four million people were displaced since IS emergence.
IS is currently struggling with a few remaining members to defend Mosul, its last major stronghold in Iraq where a security campaign has been running since October 2016 to retake the city.
IS has held a few towns in western Anbar since 2014, and the Iraqi government is predicted to move to liberating those areas after retaking Mosul.
ISIS kills imam in western Mosul(!)
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) A local source in Mosul has said that Islamic State militants killed the imam of a mosque located in the western side of the city.
“IS militants shot dead the Imam of a mosque in Hawi al-Kanisah region in front of the residents after he refused to approve a death sentence against people who refused to take part in terrorist operations against the security troops deployed there,” the source told Alsumaria News on Monday.
The source added that “the Imam refused to issue the death sentence and shoot them as such sentences should be issued by a judge and carried out by authorities in question.”
After losing most of the lands that were under its control in Mosul, IS resorts to this step to intimidate people to urge them carry out terrorist operations.
IS has executed hundreds of civilians and security members since it took over large areas in Iraq to proclaim a self-styled “Islamic Caliphate”.
Iraqi troops launched military operations to drive IS militants out of western Mosul, Islamic State’s strongest stronghold in Iraq.
Eastern Mosul was recaptured from IS in January, after a US-backed offensive was launched in October. A new offensive started in February to retake the west.
Retaking Mosul could ruin the “Islamic Caliphate”, which was declared in 2014 when the group occupied several parts of the country.
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20 civilian dead found in southern Mosul
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Twenty bodies of women and children, executed by the Islamic State, were found in the south of Nineveh province, a medical source said.
“The hospital of Qayyarah town, south of Mosul, received 20 bodies of women and children who were killed by IS while trying to escape the western side of Mosul,” the source told Alsumaria on Monday. The bodies were found by security troops near the town, he added.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the source said “some bodies are decayed. They were buried at the same places, where they were executed by the militants.”
Tens of civilians who flee regions controlled by IS have been shot dead or killed by mines planted by the militants.
Hundreds of civilians and security members were executed by IS since it took over large areas in Iraq to proclaim a self-styled “Islamic Caliphate” in 2014. The executions were carried out over accusations of collaboration with the Iraqi security authorities or for attempting to flee areas under its control.
Iraqi forces and allied militias have found several mass graves in Islamic State-held areas since the Iraqi government, backed by a U.S.-led military coalition, launched a major security offensive in October 2016 to recapture the city of Mosul, Islamic State’s largest stronghold in Iraq.
Iraqi and coalition forces are also facing accusations of causing dozens of civilian deaths over the past month while targeting IS locations in Mosul.
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32 civilians die in ISIS shelling in eastern Mosul
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Thirty-two civilians, including women and children, died Monday when Islamic State militants shelled areas in eastern and northern Mosul, according to an Iraqi security officer.
Capt. Amir Watheq told Kurdish-run BasNews that IS improvised mortars targeted Muthanna, Baladiyat, Rifaq, al-Barid and al-Sukkar districts in eastern and northeastern Mosul, causing the casualties which ambluances rushed to hospitals and medical units in the region.
Civilian’s safety has been a heating matter since U.S.-backed operations launched in October to retake Iraq’s second largest city.
Though hundreds of IS fighters fled eastern Mosul when security forces recaptured the area in October, the militants continued to occasionally target civilians and security forces there with shelling and suicide bombings.
The dilemma persisted when another offensive launched in February to retake the western side of Mosul, a densely-populated and narrowly-structured region that is home to nearly 750.000 civilians. More than 200 civilians died in apparent strikes by the U.S.-led coalition last month. The Iraqi government and security command continue to reiterate that the deaths were caused by booby-traps planted by IS in civilians’ homes. The Pentagon said it was opening a probe into the allegations, but stressed it was not going to change combat tactics.
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