Iraqi troops advance in eastern Mosul amid fierce clashes

IS sent six suicide car bombers to target the advancing Iraqi forces, but unlike in the first weeks of the Mosul operation, most of the cars used on Monday were not heavily armoured and were disabled with tank fire.

One suicide bomber managed to drive his explosives-laden car through a roadblock and hit an Iraqi convoy. The blast shattered windows for blocks around, carpeting a quiet residential street with shrapnel.

At least one Humvee was torn apart by the attack and four soldiers were slightly wounded, according to an Iraqi officer overseeing the operation who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters.

Iraqi state television showed live images of morning clashes near the five-star Ninevah International Hotel, one of the city’s iconic buildings. In the footage, Humvees are seen driving by burnt-out buildings against a backdrop of explosions and gunfire.

Al-Aridi said Iraqi forces expect to reach the last remaining bridges that span the Tigris within days.

Four months into the Mosul operation, Iraqi forces say they control nearly all of the city’s eastern half, but another wave of intense IS resistance likely awaits them in Mosul’s west.

The western half of the city is home to some of Mosul’s oldest neighbourhoods, with narrow streets that will further complicate the urban fight. Also, the United Nations estimates that more than 700,000 people are trapped there, living under siege-like conditions.

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Associated Press writer Sinan Salaheddin in Baghdad contributed to this report.

Susannah George, The Associated Press

by Canadian Press

Iraqi troops advance in eastern Mosul amid fierce clashes

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