More areas retaken from Daesh near Iraq’s Mosul

Iraqi government soldiers have liberated more areas around the northern city of Mosul from Daesh terrorists in a massive offensive aimed at retaking the entire city from the extremists.

Military sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Peshmerga fighters have established control over the Dirik Village near the town of Bashiqa, which lies 12 kilometers northeast of Mosul, on Wednesday, Kurdish Rudaw television network reported.

Iraq’s Joint Operations Command (JOC) also announced that Iraqi counter-terrorism units were only two kilometers away from Mosul, which located some 400 kilometers north of the capital Baghdad.

Additionally, an unnamed Iraqi military official said fighter jets from the US-led military coalition have struck areas close to the village of Sari Tepe, killing five Daesh terrorists. The slain Takfiris were reportedly involved in the October 21 militant attack against the oil-rich northern city of Kirkuk.

Iraqi army soldiers also unearthed a stash of weapons in the recently-liberated Assyrian town of Karemlash, located around 30 kilometers southeast of Mosul.

The development came shortly after government forces uncovered tunnels, which were formerly used by Daesh militants, inside a monastery in the same area.

Moreover, at least 50 Daesh members were killed on Tuesday when explosives planted in two vehicles went off by accident in an eastern suburb of Mosul. A civilian also lost his life in the explosion.

Meanwhile, some 10,000 Iraqi civilians have reportedly managed to flee Mosul, which is under tight Daesh control.

Elsewhere, in the al-Zour area of the eastern province of Diyala, Iraqi army soldiers have discovered a number of missiles, mortar rounds and an explosive belt belonging to Daesh members.

Saddam’s cousin arrested over Kirkuk attack

Meanwhile, Kirkuk’s police directorate announced on Tuesday that security forces had arrested a cousin of slain Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in connection with a terrorist assault on the city of Kirkuk last week.

Kirkuk’s police chief, Brigadier General Sarhad Qadir, said Nizar Mahmoud Abdul Ghani was arrested along with a Daesh militant in the town of Daquq south of Kirkuk.

Some 9,000 Iraqis displaced in Mosul operation

Furthermore, the United Nations (UN)’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has reported that nearly 9,000 people have been internally displaced as a result of the offensive to liberate Mosul.

“The majority of displaced people so far are sheltering in host communities. All families, who have fled the fighting, are reported to be in a vulnerable condition and requiring assistance,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday.

He added that the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) continues to receive reports of extrajudicial killings and summary executions by Daesh, among other crimes, against civilians as Iraqi government forces are closing in on Mosul.

“The Human Rights Office also continues to receive information that reinforces the belief that Daesh is deliberately using civilians as human shields,” Dujarric said.