Politics
16:58, 26-Aug-2017
Iraqi forces free three neighborhoods from ISIL in Tal Afar
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Iraqi security forces on Saturday liberated three neighborhoods from ISIL militants in the city of Tal Afar, the Iraqi military said.
The federal police forces and paramilitary Hashd Shaabi units recaptured the areas of Qadsiyah Oula, Qadsiyah Thaniyah in northern part of the city and al-Rabie neighborhood in the west of the central part of Tal Afar, Lt. Gen. Abdul-Amir Yarallah from the Joint Operations Command (JOC) said in a brief statement.
By the recapture of these neighborhoods, the federal police and its elite forces, known as Rapid Response, have ended their part within the offensive to free Tal Afar from ISIL militants, according to the statement.
With the latest advance, the federal police have liberated 19 neighborhoods from the extremist terrorist group.
Until Friday night, the Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) forces, Iraqi army, federal police and paramilitary Hashd Shaabi units have managed to free a total of 16 neighborhoods and brought the troops to the city center, according to an earlier statement by Yarallah.
On August 20, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, also the commander-in-chief of Iraqi forces, declared the start of an operation to retake the control of Tal Afar and nearby areas from ISIL militants.
Tal Afar, some 70 km west of Mosul, is the last ISIL stronghold in the province of Nineveh.
The United Nation's International Organization for Migration estimates that some 10,000 to 40,000 people are still living in Tal Afar and surrounding areas.
Source(s): Xinhua News Agency