MAKHMOUR – The Iraqi Army recaptured the Makhmour village of Kabarouk from the Islamic State (ISIS) on Monday, part of an ongoing operation to liberate the militants’ stronghold of Mosul, an Iraqi officer on the front said. Amin Shekhani, who had earlier said that coalition forces would not be providing air support in the fight for the village because of too many civilians present, said that warplanes had targeted fleeing ISIS militants. “The coalition forces did not participate in strikes inside the village but conducted airstrikes against the Daesh (ISIS) militants when they escaped the village,” Shekhani said. He had earlier told Rudaw that, “We asked the coalition forces to keep the Daesh snipers in check but were told that, due to the large numbers of civilians involved, they will not conduct airstrikes until the civilians manage to leave the area.” There was no immediate comment from the coalition about the operation. Shekhani told Rudaw that 123 families were believed to be inside the village, together with only 25 Islamic militants. At least three Iraqi soldiers were reportedly wounded since the operation started early morning on Monday. Baghdad has deployed thousands of soldiers on the Makhmour front since February. US Marines have also set up a frontline base that they call “Fire Base Bell” in the vicinity. The deployments are believed to be in anticipation of a planned offensive to liberate Mosul – Iraq’s second-largest city and the ISIS stronghold in Iraq – which has been under ISIS control since June 2014. The Iraqi army has so far managed to retake four villages, achievements that according to some Iraqi officials and military experts are slow.
