Iraqi army reclaims 2 areas of western Mosul

By Amir al-Saadi

NINEVEH, Iraq (AA) – The Iraqi army managed on Sunday to reclaim two neighborhoods of western Mosul from Daesh, according to a mılitary source.

"The Iraqi army’s anti-terrorism forces liberated the two neighborhoods of Wadi al-Ain and Rajm al-Hadid, [in the western part] of the city," Iraqi Lt. Gen. Abdul Amir Yarallah said in an statement broadcast on state television.

"The Iraqi flag has been raised over the buildings in these areas after our enemy suffered great losses,” he said, without specifying the bulk of these losses.

This development came shortly after another announcement Sunday morning that said the forces had taken over the neighborhood of Orouba and the industrial zone in the western side of the city.

In mid-February, Iraqi ground forces -- backed by U.S.-led coalition air power -- began fresh operations aimed at ousting Daesh militants from western Mosul, the terrorist group’s last bastion in northern Iraq.

The offensive is part of a wider campaign launched last October to retake the entire city, which Daesh overran in mid-2014.