US envoy says Mosul operation has already started
In a news conference held at the US embassy in Baghdad on Saturday, Brett McGurk, the US envoy to fight Islamic State, said the coalition was working closely with the Iraqi government and Iraqi security commanders to drive ISIS out of Mosul.
“The operation to liberate Mosul, isolating Mosul, is already underway,” said McGurk. “So you've heard about the movement of forces to Makhmour to begin to get some forces in place to begin to organise this overall endeavour.”
But McGurk said the operation in Mosul would be very complicated and that it was important to ensure that it was well planned in all aspects.
“I will say Mosul will be very complicated, it will be a mix of forces and it will be very important to ensure it's well planned: it's well planned from a military perspective, it's well planned from a humanitarian perspective and it's well planned from a political perspective,” he explained.
“The operation to liberate Mosul, isolating Mosul, is already underway,” said McGurk. “So you've heard about the movement of forces to Makhmour to begin to get some forces in place to begin to organise this overall endeavour.”
But McGurk said the operation in Mosul would be very complicated and that it was important to ensure that it was well planned in all aspects.
“I will say Mosul will be very complicated, it will be a mix of forces and it will be very important to ensure it's well planned: it's well planned from a military perspective, it's well planned from a humanitarian perspective and it's well planned from a political perspective,” he explained.