Iraqi Forces Enter ISIL-held Hit, Thousands Flee Fighting

Commanders on the scene from Iraq’s elite counterterrorism forces, who are leading the offensive, said Monday they are clearing ISIL fighters from Hit’s northern neighborhoods as they push toward the town center.

Hit lies along an ISIL supply line that links the extremist militants in Iraq to those in Syria.

Thousands of civilians are fleeing as Iraqi troops advance under cover of heavy airstrikes and artillery fire.