Advertisement

  1. National

Poor weather hampers advance of Iraqi special forces into Mosul

Iraqi special forces are holding their positions along Mosul's eastern outskirts as poor weather hampers their advance into the city to oust the so-called Islamic State.

Military chief Brigadier General Haider Fadhil said they did not plan to make any further advance into the terrorist stronghold on Wednesday because clouds could obscure the view of aircraft and drones.

Troops have made a swift advance to the outskirts of Mosul in recent weeks. However they have warned it could take months to finally drive out IS from the city.

View all 42 updates ›

Iraqi troops advance into eastern outskirts of Mosul

Iraqi troops on the outskirts of Mosul Credit: APTN

Iraqi elite troops appear to be edging into Mosul, following two weeks of fighting against so-called Islamic State fighters in the surrounding area.

Reuters reported an Iraqi officer as saying troops had entered the al-Karama district east of the city.

"They have entered Mosul," General Wissam Araji of the US-trained Counter Terrorism Service said.

It came shortly after a military commander said were just a few hundred metres from Mosul and could enter the city "within hours".

More on this story