"The Iraqi forces have taken control of a large number of villages in the Southern part of Mosul in addition to seizing back al-Qayara airbase," the Arabic-language media quoted Iraqi volunteer forces (Hashd al-Shaabi) Spokesman in Nineveh Province Mahmoud al-Sourji as saying.

Al-Sourji said that the Iraqi joint forces backed by the country's air force inflicted heavy losses on the ISIL.

He went on to say that the Iraqi forces are now very close to winning back Mosul city after taking control of al-Qayara airbase.

"The Iraqi joint forces are now only 50 kilometers from the center of Nineveh province," al-Sourji added.

He reiterated that the importance of al-Qayara region is because the oil well are located there and the ISIS main source of income is from the sale of crude.

On Saturday, the Iraqi army and popular forces took back al-Qayara air base in Southern Mosul after heavy clashes with the ISIL terrorist group.

"The Iraqi security, tribal and anti-terrorism forces could take full control of the air base after heavy clashes with the ISIL militants," Nineveh province's governor-general Nawfal Hamadi al-Sultan said, and added, "The terrorists fled towards al-Qayara town after they came under the pro-government forces' heavy attacks, and left their weapons and equipment at the base."

"The pro-government forces have now deployed at the air base and plan to use it as a platform to launch military operations against the ISIL in Mosul in the future," he added.

Media reports said on Thursday that the ISIS terrorist group declared state of alert in Mosul in anticipation of the Iraqi army's advances and its imminent attack on the city after the Iraqi flag was hoisted in the city center.

After the Iraqi flag was hoisted on Bab al-Toub market in the center of Mosul by unknown parties, the ISIL called its militants to go on alert, the Arabic-language al-Sumeria News quoted an unnamed security source as saying on Thursday.

He noted that this is for the first time that the ISIL takes such a measure since two years that it captured Mosul city.

"The armed men destroyed the ISIS flags and took and made several arrests, taking their prisoners to an unknown place," he added, FNA reported.

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