Leaflets dropped over western Mosul in advance of push

By Arif Yusuf and Ali Jawad

BAGHDAD (AA) - Iraqi aircraft dropped leaflets over western Mosul early Tuesday urging civilian residents to brace for impending army operations aimed at wresting the area from the Daesh terrorist group.

"Your enemy [Daesh] has been defeated in eastern Mosul," the leaflets read. "Your armed forces are now preparing to advance on the western side [of the city]."

The leaflets also called on residents to cooperate with Iraqi military personnel with a view to limiting civilian casualties and facilitating the operation.

Iraqi Army Captain Qassem al-Rabei told Anadolu Agency that troops were currently awaiting orders to advance on western Mosul.

In October, the Iraqi army, backed by a U.S.-led air coalition and local allies on the ground, began a wide-ranging campaign to retake Mosul, which Daesh overran in mid-2014.

Last week, the Iraqi army announced the "total liberation" of eastern Mosul -- after three months of fighting -- from the grip of the terrorist group.