ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service (ICTS), who spearheaded the operation to retake the eastern half of Mosul but did not take part in the outset of the fresh offensive launched on Sunday, will have “a big role” in the liberation of the districts located in the western half of Mosul -- that is when the real fight begins with at least 1,800 ISIS militants and 200 suicide bombers, Brigadier General Yahya Rasul, spokesperson for the Joint Operations Command, told Rudaw TV on Sunday night.
He said retaking the remaining half of the city from the extremist group will be “harder” because of the densely populated areas and the narrow streets, which will be an obstacle for the movement of military vehicles.
To protect civilian lives and the infrastructure, he said, “We will depend on forces who are well-trained and have gained experience in fighting in the residential areas and street fighting, that are represented by the Counter Terrorism Service and the Quick Response Units that belong to the federal police.”
“The forces of the Counter Terrorism Service will have a big role in the next pages of the operation to storm and liberate the districts of the right coast of Mosul, in coordination with the Quick Response Units of the federal police.”
He said the Iraqi forces will face an army of at least 1,800 militants, and 200 suicide bombers, noting that they have “accurate intelligence” on ISIS positions, methods, and their movements in ISIS-held areas in western Mosul.
“The figures for the armed militants, based on the intelligence, are somewhere between 1,800 to 2,000, and there are about 200 suiciders.”
Maj. Gen. Rasul avoided giving an exact timeline of the operation, adding that it will depend on the course of the battle.
He however said that based on his observations of the advances made on Sunday, where Iraqi forces liberated more than a dozen villages south and southwest of the city, including controlling a power station that supplies electricity to the whole of western Mosul, the operation will reach the southern edges of Mosul very soon.
“Within the next few days, we will reach the edges of [western] Mosul, the districts of the [western] Mosul. And then the real fight will begin with the members of the terrorist organization that will involve street fighting and fighting in the residential areas."
