Iraqi forces have entered neighborhoods in the east of Mosul and continue their advance against ISIL terrorists ahead of schedule, Special Presidential Envoy for the US-led coalition against ISIL Brett McGurk announced on Thursday.
On October 17, Iraqi Prime Minister Heider al-Abadi announced the start of a military operation to recapture Mosul from ISIL, which is outlawed in Russia, with the help of airstrikes by the US-led international coalition. According to media reports, about 30,000 Iraqi soldiers and 4,000 Kurdish Peshmerga fighters were initially taking part in the operation.
Earlier in the day, media reported that the militant group leader Abu Bakr Baghdadi arrived in Mosul and released an audiotape, calling on jihadists to defend Mosul. He also called on ISIL militants "to unleash the fire of anger" against Turkish forces fighting ISIL in Syria.
SPUTNIK/MNA
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