Iraqi forces kill Daesh 'religious' police chief in western Mosul

Iraqi security forces have killed the so-called religious police chief of the Takfiri Daesh terrorist group in the western part of Mosul as government troops and allied fighters from Popular Mobilization Units are battling to drive the extremist out of their last urban stronghold in the country.

Iraq's Federal Police, in a statement released on Friday, announced that security personnel had killed Abu Abdul Rahman and his military aide Yusuf Ali Humaidan during a military operation in the Zanjili neighborhood of the city, located some 400 kilometers (250 miles) north of the capital Baghdad, Arabic-language al-Sumaria television network reported.

The statement added that police forces had wrested control over 40 percent of the district, cleared four booby-trapped houses and defused six car bombs.

The troops also established safe corridors for the evacuation of civilians from the terrorist-held region.

Meanwhile, the media bureau of the Popular Mobilization Units stated that the pro-government volunteer fighters, commonly known by the Arabic name Hashd al-Sha’abi, had liberated the border village of Chair Qalfas from the grip of Daesh Takfiris, and raised national Iraqi flags over several buildings there.

500 Daesh terrorists trapped in Mosul’s Old City

Separately, Lieutenant Captain Abdulah Taha of the Federal Police said on Friday that the number of Daesh militants remaining in western Mosul’s Old City now stands at 500.

Taha said Daesh extremists are shifting locations swiftly across the district’s narrow streets and inside residential buildings in an attempt to create an impression that their numbers are much higher.  

2,000 Daesh members slain amid west Mosul battle

Moreover, Hisham al-Hashemi, an Iraqi security analyst, said Daesh terror group has lost at least 2,000 members, nearly 300 bombers and 350 snipers ever since the military operation to liberate western Mosul started more than three months ago.

He added that the Takfiris have also lost control over 93 percent of the territories they once held in western Mosul.

Hashemi further noted that Iraqi government forces and their allies have also destroyed seven Daesh arms depots and two chemical plants during the mentioned period, and shot down 75 unmanned aerial vehicles.

Iraqi army soldiers and volunteer fighters from the Popular Mobilization Units have made sweeping gains against the Takfiri elements since launching the Mosul operation on October 17, 2016.

The Iraqi forces took control of eastern Mosul in January after 100 days of fighting, and launched the battle in the west on February 19.

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