MSmoke is seen as members of the Iraqi Army clash with Islamic State fighters at a frontline in northwest of Mosul, Iraq, May 5, 2017. REUTERS/Danish Siddiqui
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) More than 200 Islamic State militants were killed in the southwestern direction of Tal Afar, which was handled by the army’s Counter-Terrorism Service, the Joint Operations Command announced.
In a statement on Sunday, the JOC said 217 militants and eight snipers were wounded. Twenty-one booby-trapped vehicle were destroyed, while three others were defused. 105 explosives and fifteen booby-trapped houses were defused. Six tunnels were filled. Several weapons, telecommunications devices and vehicles were seized.
Earlier on the day, the military media said government troops and allied paramilitary forces had retaken full control over the town in a seven-day offensive after Iraqi PM Haidar al-Abadi announced in a televised speech on August 20 the beginning of operations to recapture Tal Afar, which has been held by the militants since 2014, when the extremist group first emerged to proclaim its self-styled ‘caliphate’. This came after 40 days of declaring victory in Mosul, the group’s former capital, where operations lasted between October to July.
Up to 2000 Islamic State fighters are believed to remain in Tal Afar, Brig. Gen. Yehia Rasool, the JOC’s spokesperson, said in remarks last week.
The United Nations says more than 30.000 were displaced as operations launched for the enclave.
After Tal Afar, the group’s last enclave in Nineveh province, the Iraqi government is expected to carry out offensives to liberate the few remaining havens in Kirkuk, Anbar and Salahuddin.
