Major General Ismail Al Mahlawi told the Associated Press that the government forces "crushed" Islamic State (ISIS, ISIL, IS and Daesh) group after three days of battle in the western town of Rutba, killing over 60 IS militants.

The complex assault on Rutba (Rutbah), located hundreds of kilometres south of Mosul, is just the latest in the ISIS group's attempt to try to divert Iraqi military resources from the fight for the militants' last major urban bastion in Iraq.

Iraqi security forces have made major advances in their battle to retake Mosul from the ISIS group since the offensive began on 17 October.

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