French journalist dies of wounds in Iraq’s Mosul

By Idris Okuducu

MOSUL (AA) - A French journalist has succumbed to wounds he sustained in a landmine explosion in Iraq’s northern city of Mosul, according to the French consulate in Erbil.

Stephane Villeneuve was injured by a landmine explosion on Monday while covering anti-Daesh operations in western Mosul. An Iraqi journalist was killed and two French journalists were also injured in the blast.

According to the Iraqi Observatory for Press Freedom, an NGO, a total of seven journalists have been killed -- and 11 injured -- within the first half of 2017 alone.

Most of these were reportedly killed while covering clashes between the army and the Daesh terrorist group, which overran Mosul in mid-2014.

On Sunday, Iraqi forces began fresh operations aimed at retaking Mosul's Old City, a densely-populated maze of narrow alleys where fighting is usually done house to house.

Backed by air cover provided by a U.S.-led coalition, the Iraqi military is currently engaged in a months-long campaign to recapture Mosul, Daesh’s last stronghold in northern Iraq.