Smoke rises at Daesh positions southwest of Mosul, Iraq October 31, 2016.
Members of Iraq’s elite Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) battled their way into the city’s eastern Karama neighborhood on Monday and are currently engaged in clashes with the terrorists, said General Wissam Araji.
"They have entered Mosul…They are fighting now in Hay al-Karama," he was quoted by Reuters as saying.
A vehicle of the Iraqi army drives south of Mosul, Iraq October 30, 2016.
Entry into the city itself marks a new stage in the battle for Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city and ISIS’s self-proclaimed headquarters in the Arab country, which is now in its third week.
“The battle of Mosul will not be a picnic,” said Hadi al-Amiri, the head of Iraq’s Badr Organization.” We are prepared for the battle of Mosul even if it lasts for months,” he added.
Earlier, Iraq’s Joint Operations Command announced that the CTS had launched a three-pronged offensive towards the eastern borders of Mosul.
According to officials, ISIS (Daesh / ISIL) has been using car bombs in and around the city to hinder the government troops’ advance.
S/SH 11