Iraqi forces rolled into al-Sharqat on Thursday (September 22nd) following the collapse of "Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant" (ISIL) defences in the Salaheddine province town, the Iraqi Ministry of Defence said.
"Iraqi forces stormed al-Sharqat and raised the Iraqi flag over the government complex after inflicting heavy losses on ISIL," ministry spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Rasul said, in an operation launched ahead of a push for the city of Mosul.
"Military units have taken the enemy by surprise and broken its defences, killing many of the terrorists with support from international coalition warplanes," he said.
