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Commander: Iraqi Forces Preparing Western Mosul Offensive


A member of Iraqi rapid response forces fires a rocket launcher during a battle with Islamic State militants in the district of Yarimja in southern Mosul, Iraq, Jan. 18, 2017.
A member of Iraqi rapid response forces fires a rocket launcher during a battle with Islamic State militants in the district of Yarimja in southern Mosul, Iraq, Jan. 18, 2017.

Iraqi forces have started preparing an offensive to capture the western side of Mosul from Islamic State, campaign commander Lieutenant General Abdul Ameer Rasheed Yarallah said.

Popular Mobilization "is preparing an operation in the next two, three days, to back up the operation to retake the right bank" of the city, on the western side of the Tigris river, Mosuliya TV cited him as saying on Tuesday.

Popular Mobilization is a coalition of predominantly Iranian-trained Shi'ite groups, formed in 2014 to take part in the war on Islamic State. It became officially part of the Iraqi armed forces last year.

Iraqi officials on Monday announced that the eastern side of the northern Iraqi city has been taken from Islamic State, after nearly 100 days of fighting.

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    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

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