Government forces alongside Kurdish Peshmerga targeted the Islamic State in the eastern districts of the city of Mosul as they advanced as part of their wider operation to recapture the embattled city under the control of the extreme Muslim group. The soldiers fired rockets towards militant from nearby Ali Rash, about 7 km southeast of Mosul, then stormed the Intisar neighborhood in the city, killing several militants along the way. “We are now at the edges of the city of Mosul. We faced and overcame the first challenge and, God willing, our troops will continue to advance without pause,” said Hussein Baghdadi, Iraqi soldier.
Residents reported that heavy explosions shook eastern districts of the city, shortly after the leader of the militant group tried to rally his followers against Western-backed Iraqi military offensive. One resident in the east of the city, where Iraqi troops breached Islamic State defenses earlier this week, said the militants fired dozens of rockets towards the Intisar, Quds and Samah neighborhoods, where soldiers are closing in.