Al-Alam - Iraq
Local residents were seen leaving buildings and running away waving white flags as audio of gunfire and explosions echoed across the area and black smoke billowed from damaged buildings.
Abdul Wahab al-Saidi, a general from the U.S. trained Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) said all residents were later evacuated from the district moments before a car bomb exploded.
Militants have been steadily retreating from areas around Mosul towards the city since the campaign to capture Mosul started on October 17 with air and ground support from a U.S.-led coalition.
The battle for Mosul, the largest city under Islamic State (ISIS / Daesh / ISIL / IS) control in either Iraq or Syria, is turning into the biggest battle in Iraq's turbulent history since the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003.
The CTS became the only unit to have breached the city limits from the eastern side two weeks ago. Other army units have yet to breach the northern and the southern sides.
Iraqi military estimates put the number of insurgents in Mosul at 5,000 to 6,000, facing a 100,000-strong coalition of Iraqi government units, Peshmerga fighters and Shia militias.
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