Iraqi troops inside Islamic State-held Mosul for first time since 2014

November 03, 2016 18:09

Iraqi forces have entered Islamic State-held Mosul for the first time in more than two years, the Iraqi defense ministry said, in an operation to free the key city from the militant group's control.

Iraqi Ministry of Defense spokesman Brig General Tahsin Ibrahim told CNN that units of the 9th Armored Division had entered the city, adding that troops had stormed the neighbourhood of al Intisar in the east.

Penetrating the eastern border on Thursday has been the most significant breakthrough in the offensive, launched more than two weeks ago. Officials have warned that entering Mosul will likely trigger the fiercest fighting seen yet, and that the battle is expected to be fought "street to street," or even "house to house."

« Back to LIVE

TOP STORIES

ED recovers Rs 35 cr from domestic help of J'khand minister's secretary

The premises are alleged to be of the domestic help of Jharkhand Rural Development Minister Alamgir Alam's personal secretary Sanjiv Lal.

Hamas accepts Qatari-Egypt ceasefire plan for Gaza

Thousands of people flee eastern Rafah after Israel orders people to evacuate as fears of a full-blown military assault on the city sheltering more than one million displaced people grow.

New all-in-one vaccine may prove effective against all coronaviruses

The research published in 'Nature Nanotechnolog' on Monday is based on a new approach to vaccine development called "proactive vaccinology", where scientists build a vaccine before the disease-causing pathogen even emerges, which has...

Saudi Smash TT: Manika shocks World No 2 Wang

Manika Batra shocked World No. 2 Wang Manyu of China to secure the biggest win of her singles career.

Bomb threats: HC seeks police's school evacuation plan

Justice Subramonium Prasad said though police have filed a status report listing the standard operating procedure for bomb detection and disposal squads and the guidelines to deal with bomb threats in schools, they have not submitted...