ISIS Latest News: Iraqi Forces Retake Mosul Airport From Islamic State
Operations of Jihadist militant group ISIS takes a heavy blow on Thursday, Feb. 23, after losing strategic ground in Iraq. Iraqi forces have reclaimed majority of Mosul's airport from ISIS control in its effort to completely expel Islamic State militants from the city.
According to Iraqi and allied officials, Iraqi forces seizing almost all of Mosul's airport is considered an important milestone in the bigger effort to retake the western half of Iraq's second largest city from the Islamic State, The New York Times reports. The step to retake the airport, which has been led by the Iraqi federal police, is reportedly a promising start to a difficult and violent fight to fully expel ISIS from the city.
Iraqi forces previously seized the eastern half of the city but with significant Iraqi casualties as a consequence. About 500 Iraqi military personnel reportedly perished while around 3,000 were wounded in the operation.
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After taking the eastern half of the city, Iraqi forces halted operations for three weeks in order to form a strategy that would retake the city's western half. The offensive was then resumed by seizing the rest of the city on multiple axes in order to hinder ISIS from coordinating defenses.
A week ahead of the operation, the United States led air strikes against 33 targets, some of which are believed to be command centers of the Islamic State.
Iraqi forces seized the airport in a few hours and has since moved swiftly, retaking two villages – Yarmouk and Tal al-Raya – located near the airport as well as regaining control of the al-Ghazlani military camp. They have also reportedly seized an ISIS weapons storage warehouse, former ISIS headquarters and the barracks at al-Ghazlani.
According to CNN, the Joint Operations Command Center also reported that the Iraqi forces "killed many ISIS militants," "destroyed many ISIS vehicles" and defused 60 improvised explosives.
The airport is considered an important location in the Iraqi forces' southern approach to the old part of western Mosul. When the advancing troops managed to reach the runway, some of them reportedly celebrated but were also saddened by the damage done by the Islamic State to the city's airport and its runway.
