Mosul advance 'quicker' than expected, Iraqi PM says
Four days into the US-backed campaign to retake the city from IS, Iraqi special forces join in and prepare to lead the charge.
Thursday 20 October 2016 15:37, UK
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![A man stands in front of a fire from oil that has been set ablaze in the Qayyarah area]()
Image: A man stands in front of a fire from oil that has been set ablaze in the Qayyarah area -
![An Iraqi forces M109 self-propelled howitzer fires towards the village of Tall al-Tibah]()
Image: An Iraqi forces M109 self-propelled howitzer fires towards the village of Tall al-Tibah some 30km south of Mosul -
![Iraqi soldiers look on as smoke rises from the Qayyarah area]()
Image: In the biggest Iraqi military operation in years, forces have retaken dozens of villages, mostly south and east of Mosul -
![A Kurdish peshmerga soldier aims his rifle toward a road to Mosul as forces continue the battle]()
Image: A Kurdish Peshmerga soldier aims his rifle toward a road to Mosul as forces continue the battle, which is being supported with US airstrikes -
![An Iraqi forces M109 self-propelled howitzer fires towards the village of Tall al-Tibah]()
Image: An Iraqi forces M109 self-propelled howitzer -
![A flight deck crew member stands next to an F/A-18E Super Hornet just before take off for Mosul, Iraq to provide air-support]()
Image: A flight deck crew member stands next to an F/A-18E Super Hornet on the USS Dwight D Eisenhower CVN 69 carrier in The Gulf -
![An aviation ordnanceman inspects a bomb on an F/A-18E Super Hornet just before take-off for Mosul]()
Image: An aviation ordnanceman inspects a bomb on the fighter aircraft just before take-off -
![An F/A-18E Super Hornet takes off for Mosul, Iraq to provide air-support]()
Image: The Super Hornet takes off for Mosul to provide air support in the battle against IS militants -
![Peshmerga forces fire an anti-aircraft gun towards Islamic state militants positions in the town of Naweran near Mosul]()
Image: Peshmerga forces fire an anti-aircraft gun towards Islamic State militants' positions in the town of Naweran, near Mosul -
![Displaced people who are fleeing from clashes arrive in Qayyarah, during an operation to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul]()
Image: Displaced people who are fleeing from clashes arrive in Qayyarah -
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Image: Peshmerga forces prepare their anti-tank guided missiles in front of Islamic State militants' positions -
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Image: A Kurdish Peshmerga fighter takes position -
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Image: Iraqi soldiers stand next to a tank as smoke rises from the Qayyarah area -
![Iraqi forces fire a M109 self-propelled howitzer towards the village of Al-Muftuya from a position in Kani al-Harami]()
Image: Iraqi forces fire a M109 self-propelled howitzer towards the village of Al-Muftuya from a position in Kani al-Harami -
![Smoke rises at Islamic State militants' positions in the town of Naweran]()
Image: Smoke rises at Islamic State militants' positions in the town of Naweran -
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Image: Iraqi army personnel in Qayyarah -
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Image: Iraqi security forces gesture in Qayyarah -
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Image: Smoke rises from a bomb taken through the window of a military vehicle in Qayyarah -
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Image: Iraqi army soldiers carry children who have been displaced -
![A man takes a selfie in front of a fire from oil that has been set ablaze in the Qayyarah area]()
Image: A man takes a selfie in front of a fire in the Qayyarah area
The battle to oust Islamic State extremists from Mosul is going "more quickly than we thought", the Iraqi PM has said.
The comment by Haider al Abadi came as to retake Iraq's second-largest city and IS stronghold.
"Our forces have started to move forward to free this city which was taken by IS over two years ago," he said.
"The fighting forces are currently pushing forward toward the town more quickly than we thought, and more quickly certainly than we established in our plan of campaign."
Mr Abadi said "pockets of resistance" remain but residents of the region have largely welcomed the advancing Iraqi forces.
The Iraqi army elite unit and Kurdish Peshmerga fighters have started trying to take back villages north and east of Mosul.
The elite US-trained force, called Golden Division, said they entered the town of Bartella from the east after a heavy gun battle that saw IS militants unleash a number of suicide truck bombs.
The addition of the elite force marked a significant intensification of the fight. As they advanced, attack helicopters fired on the militants and heavy gunfire echoed across the plains.
Golden Division is expected to lead the charge into Mosul.
So far, the fighting has been concentrated in a cluster of towns and villages outside Mosul that are mostly uninhabited.
Islamic State militants have planted roadside bombs and dispatched suicide bombers, which has slowed down the campaign.
The Peshmerga announced a "large-scale operation" to the north and northeast of Mosul.
"The operation will be in three fronts," they said in a statement. It comes after recent gains by the Kurds to the east of Mosul and Iraqi security forces to the south.
The fight for Mosul is expected to be the biggest battle in Iraq since the 2003 US- led invasion, and will likely last weeks or months.
Around 1.5 million people still live in the city, and officials fear Islamic State militants are .
Mr Abadi, speaking in a video transmission to a diplomatic meeting about Mosul in Paris, promised to protect civilians displaced by the battle and respect the human rights of the region's diverse population.