Mosul (Mostly) Liberated

Iraqi forces have declared victory over the Islamic State in Mosul, although evidently a small pocket of resistance right up against the Tigris remains.

Iraqi PM Haider al-Abadi has visited Mosul to congratulate Iraqi forces for their victory over IS in the city.

Mr Abadi was there to announce the city’s full “liberation”, his office said in a statement.

Iraqi forces, backed by US-led air strikes, have been battling to retake Mosul since 17 October last year.

Islamic State militants seized it in June 2014 before taking much of Iraq’s Sunni Arab heartland and proclaiming a “caliphate” straddling Iraq and Syria.

Kurdish Peshmerga fighters, Sunni Arab tribesmen and Shia militiamen have also been involved in the gruelling battle.

This map from ISIS Livemap shows a slightly larger area of Islamic State control in Mosul, including a remaining section of the old city.

Some videos showing the fighting and destruction:

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