Earlier this week, Iraqi forces battled their way into the Islamic State stronghold of Mosul, Iraq for the first time in more than two years. Mosul was the first city to be taken by ISIS when they swept into northern Iraq in the summer of 2014 and it's there that their leader, Abu Bakr-al Baghdadi, announced the creation of a caliphate.
Whilst the army are making good progress, a total liberation of the city could take time. Despite IS military capability having been ground down over two years of heavy fighting that's seen them lose possibly up to 45,000 fighters, this will be no easy fight. The 6,000 or so IS fighters (some rumours are claiming as many as 10,000) in the city have had months to dig in, setting up sniper positions, machine gun nests and preparing teams of suicide bombers to try and turn the city into an urban meat grinder.
A BBC News team were recently on the ground with Iraqi forces carrying out house-to-house checks when they came under attack from a suicide bomber. According to the BBC, a car packed with explosives drove directly into troops stood on the opposite side of the wall. Five soldiers lost their lives in the blast.
BBC team metres from deadly car bomb attack, targeted at Iraqi special forces fighting IS militants in #Mosulhttps://t.co/6np6IILinQ pic.twitter.com/YgqSXicTc7
- BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) November 6, 2016
Similar attacks will become the norm as the army push further inside the city in hopes of forever clearing it from Islamic State militants.
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Last week, Danny Gold reported on the ground for us in Iraq. He travelled to Qaraqosh, a predominantly Christian city, to give an eye witness report of a town liberated from ISIS.
Featured image credit: BBC
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