Iraq News
Security

Iraqi forces surround Mosul, trapping ISIL

By Alaa Hussain in Baghdad

A soldier from the Mosul Brigade of the Iraqi Special Operations Force 2 (ISOF 2) tries to spot enemy positions during a military operation to retake parts of the al-Tamim area of Mosul from the 'Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant' on November 5th. [Achilleas Zavallis/AFP]

A soldier from the Mosul Brigade of the Iraqi Special Operations Force 2 (ISOF 2) tries to spot enemy positions during a military operation to retake parts of the al-Tamim area of Mosul from the 'Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant' on November 5th. [Achilleas Zavallis/AFP]

Surrounded on all sides by Iraqi forces, "Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant" (ISIL) fighters holed up in Mosul have nowhere to go should they decide to flee the Ninawa province city, Iraqi officials tell Diyaruna.

In mid-October, when the battle for Mosul began, Iraqi forces advanced on the city from the east, south and north. After recapturing Tal Afar airport and linking up with their Kurdish peers in Sinjar to the west, the siege was completed.

ISIL fighters in Mosul have nowhere to escape to in Iraq since all roads leading out of the city have been cut off, Ninawa provincial council member Daoud Jundi told Diyaruna.

"Some of them might try to take advantage of any occasional gaps in order to flee for the desert on the Syrian side," he said, adding that security forces are monitoring these roads as well.

Every ISIL element in Mosul has probably thought about trying to escape the city, Jundi said, in light of their degraded morale and their inability to stand up to Iraqi forces, who are gradually pushing towards the city centre.

"They are looking for a way out of this difficult situation in which they have put themselves," he said, noting that this does not involve a tactical retreat but rather an escape via any means possible.

"According to intelligence information, some have shaved their beards and fled their positions in Mosul even before Iraqi troops could reach them," he said.

In addition to these external pressures, there has been chaos within ISIL's ranks as the group comes under fire, Jundi said, with the group's leaders carrying out mass executions of their own elements who are trying to flee.

Neighbouring provinces secured

Ninawa borders four Iraqi provinces, two of which -- Dohuk to the north and Erbil to the east -- are in the Kurdish region, with Salaheddine to the south-east and Anbar to the south.

The borders with Dohuk, Erbil and Salaheddine are safe, due to the deployment of military units during the battle to liberate Mosul, while security leaders in Anbar say there is no concern of ISIL re-infiltration into that province.

All of Anbar's northern and western routes have been secured, they said.

ISIL previously relied on the Baiji-Haditha road to move between Mosul and Anbar, which is now under the control of Iraqi forces, al-Baghdadi district tribal mobilisation commander Sheikh Qatari al-Samarmad told Diyaruna.

"Security forces also have taken control of the desert roads in the western parts, starting with those connecting Haditha to Kubaisa, Heet and al-Baghdadi, and surrounded most of them with earthworks and barbed wire," he said.

These measures will prevent ISIL elements from being able to infiltrate the area from outside the province, he said.

ISIL elements apprehended in Anbar have been caught as they tried to enter through official entrances and security checkpoints using false IDs, he said, noting that none have slipped in through the northern desert or remote roads.

"ISIL terrorists cannot return to Anbar from Mosul or elsewhere as they have lost their supporter base on the Anbar street and in tribal society," he added.

"The people of Anbar will never forget ISIL's repressive policies during its rule over the province," al-Samarmad said.

The encirclement of Mosul by Iraqi forces will not only help prevent ISIL fighters from infiltrating other cities in Iraq but also will sever their supply routes from outside the province, Iraqi MP Mohammed al-Sayhud told Diyaruna.

This will "greatly diminish the influx of terrorists into Iraq", he said, adding that the severing of these roads "will significantly speed up the liberation and end ISIL's military presence in Iraq once their end in Mosul comes".

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