Many indications point to escalation in battles’ fierceness started to show today at Al-Tayaran and Al-Jusaq neighborhoods, the outskirts of the old neighborhoods of the city, and the link to the administrative complex (The governarate, and the board of the government of Nainawq) at Al-Dawasa.

The real test of the Iraqi forces hasn’t started yet. The fear of ISIL’s attempts to lure the Iraqi forces to fight inside the old neighborhoods was clear today. ISIL wants to drag the Iraqi forces into fighting inside Al-Dawasa, Bab Al-Tub, and around the old city.

The Iraqi forces made a mistake by starting the battles at Al-Tayaran and Al-Jusaq. They should have started the battles from the west of the western bank, starting from Al-Ma’mun and Tal Al-Rumman, all the way to Nabils, Al-Yarmuk, and Al-Jadida to drag ISIL to the battlefields on the outskirts and for the safety of the civilians.

Deepening inside the old neighborhoods of the western bank will lead to high human loses. Also, ISIL is well trained to fight inside such densed areas. The measures ISIL has taken in those aras, like opening passages through houses, provides a great military coverage and unprecedented flexibility of their movement. 

The battle will be more complicated if the operations don’t start on the north side (Musheirifa, Hawi Al-Kanisa, & Al-Harmat) and ISIL will succeed in dragging the forces to fight inside the old city. The iraqi forces MUST start to push ISIL from both the north and the west, where those areas are open spaces and easy to target ISIL by the airforces.

The old city of Mosul never witnessed any fighting since 2003, except for some areas in Al-Dawasa, therefore, it is a very challenging area. The jihadists used to avoid this ara fearing of traps. Today, ISIL is entrenched very well in this area, knowing its ins and outs. This part of the city is a maze!

The pressure on ISIL must be on those areas for the following reasons:

1- ISF has a previous experience in fighting in those areas as they are open neighborhoods where is it easy to utilize helicopters and vehicles can maneuver easily. Those neighborhoods once recaptured will avoid any battles in the neighborhoods behind them.

2- The roads in those areas lead to the third bridge, which will enable the Iraqi forces to overlook Hawi Al-Kanisa on two sides, from the eastern bank and the western bank. This will open the north front. Also, those neighborhoods got many entrances and exits, which will allow the iraqi forces to disable ISIL’s movement.

3- Any embroilment of the Iraqi forces in raiding the old city will result in a catastrophe among the Iraqi forces and the civilians together. Since 2003 until ISIL’s invasion of Mosul, the old city never witnessed any battles as it is well known to be impenetrable and impossible for military operations, even most of the US operations failed in those neighborhoods. Yet, ISIL, over the past two and a half years, trained its members to fight in such areas.

Neighborhoods like Al-Nabi Shiit, Mahallat Al-Sajin, Bab Jidid, Al-Tawafa, and Al-Faruq are a net of mazes, even its native residents lose their way in it many times. The buildings are very fragile and unable to stand any military operation. The slightest operation would result in a human catastrophe. 

4- Today it was evident that ISIL increased its numbers of car bombs and suicide bombers in Al-Tayaran and Al-Jusaq. It is important to eliminate Wadi Iqab industrial district where ISIL’s supplues of weapons and car bombs are located.

​Updates with regards to Operation Western Bank liberation in Mosul:

1- the first phase of the operation was very successful. During this phase, all the roads South of Mosul were recaptured, as well recapturing key villages to ISIL, like Al-A’thba, Saiytarat Al-A’qrab, and Al-Bu Sayif villages.

2- The Federal Police forces are surrounding Mosul Airport  and Al-Ghuzlani military camp and waiting to finish scanning the area before recapturing them. The reason is because ISIL left tge camp and the airport two weeks before the operations were launched. We aslo posted several arial maps that show ISIL’s defense lines were built to the north of the airport, which it means that ISIL abandoned the airport and might have left traps and car bombs there. Hence, the wait for the scan results.

3- The liberation of Al-Bu Sayif village gave an important chance for the elite force of tge Golden Brigade to use Al-Shamsiyat road to pas towards Al-Yarmuk village. This was the first passage of the Tigris river from the eastern bank to the western bank.

4- There is no major displacement of residents south of Mosul. According to Ali Hashim, a member of the Federal Police, only tens of residents were able to reach out to the security forces after carrying white flags. They were housed at several empty houses in the area temporarily to protect them. Also, there are ISIL snipers who targeted several IDPs during their displacement.

6- There are no major attacks with car bombs, unlike what happened on the eastern bank when the operations started. As’ad Abullah, a leader in the Federal Police, said that only 9 car bombs ISIL sent out during the operations, 5 of which were destroyed and 4 failed their mission.

6- ISIL uses rockets and mortar shells, and those become inefficient because the Federal Police capability to spot them and then, destroy them

The green area: liberated

The black area: ISIL’s control

ISIL Kills “Abu Bakr”

ISIL did not dare to mention his real name .. they lied to people and to their selves .. ISIL, who claimed it is here to guard the Sunnis, kills Abu Bakr!

Abu Bakr Abbas Yassin Al-Darraji Al-Samarra’i, a Colonel in the Iraqi army, was beheaded by ISIL. ISIL wanted to cover the fact that he is a Sunni Iraqi military officer, disguising the world to indicate that the Iraqi Army and Military forces are solely built of the Shiite sect, and not consists of all Iraqi sects and ethnicities.

ISIL used “Abbas Yassin” to disguise the world and indicate that he is from a certain sect, just to escalate more tentions and destruction, but it fall in its evil actions.

May your soul rest in peace, and our sincere condolences to your family and friends

​About the operations of the western bank Liberation:

The movements South of Mosul started from Hammam Al-Alil towards the western bank of Mosul. Cleansing of villages, removing embankments, and the the battles are still at a normal pace. ISIL so far has not shown any major resistance. Their numbers are small there at those villages, and it plans on persuading the army into the heart of the city where it prepared complex entrenchments, where the army is planning on enticing ISIL to the southern and northern outskirts of the city.

The army is advancing at a rapid pace, liberating many villages. As of today’s early evening, the army is only 6 km away from the city. On the north, the movement is still preliminary by the 16th Brigade, along with SWAT forces, trained on Tactical fighting.

The new thing now is that the number of the Mosuli Sunni fighters has increased as the quality of their training has improved. There are about 8 thousands Mosuli fighters among different security troops, in the forms of police, army, PMUs, and among those is what is known as “Mosul SWAT” forces. This force consists of about 700 fighters, whom just finished their training with the American forces and gaing excellent capabilities and will play an effective role at this phase and will come as a force built by the Mosuli community.

In general, the operations are still at preliminary stage, and we may witness major battles within a week, passing through the city’s outskirts into the residential neighborhoods.

It seem as if ISIL has given up the airport south of Mosul, and withdrawn from it. Soon, the liberation of the airport will be declared.

The eastern bank is witnessing an escalation after launching today’s operations. ISIL luanched two bombings on the eastern bank, one of them was near Sayidati Al-Jamila restaurant, which was bombed earlier this month.

Description:

Most of the administrative and government complexes are located on the western bank of Mosul, specifically at Al-Dawasa, where the center of Mosul’s local administration, and that is the Governorate of Mosul, in addition to tge telecommunications and postal agencies and other agencies.

It is the old Mosulthat houses one of the most significant historical landmark of the city “Manaret Al-Hadbaa” (The humped minaret) and “Al-Jami’ Al-Nuri” (Al-Nuri mosque), where Ibrahim Awad declared his alleged caliphate.

Estimated ISIL forces on the western bank: 

Fighters: 2000 – 2500 fighters

Ages: %40 of the fighters are teenagers, about %7 of them are children below 12 years old.

The gates to liberate the western bank are: Musheirifa to the utmost north of the western bank, Mosul’s airport and Al-Bu Saif to its utmost south of it.

Where the battles might take place?

At Al-Zinijilli, Al-Rifa’i, Al-Islah Al-Zira’i, Al-Uraibi, 17 Tammoz, and Musheirifa from the north, and Al-Ghuzlani, Al-Tayaran, Al-Jusaq, Al-Danadan, and Al-Dawasa from the  south.

Hai Al-Thaura, Mosul Al-Jadid, and Dawrat Al-Risala (Al-Risala roundabout) will be the last defense lines for ISIL.

When can we tell that the western bank of Mosul is no longer under ISIL’s control militarily?

After liberating 17 Tammoz, Al-Zinijilli, Bab Sinjar, Al-Dawasa, and Mosul Al-Jadida, ISIL will be annihilated on the western bank of Mosul.

Information:

ISIL built high concrete barricades on the easter side of the western bank, starting from Musheirifa, all the way to Al-Mosul hotel area.

The international coalition may play a bigger role in the operations of the western bank liberation. There are increasing indicationsthat the American forces with deal with extra firmness with the next stages of the upcoming operations and they might use extra fire force. Also, other warplanes will participate in the operations after developing their fighting capabilities, like F15 and F33, and will engage more in the operations. Also, the Apatche fighter helicopters will participate in the battles more efficiently to ensure victory, eliminate ISIL’s car bombs, and annihilate what is left of the shock troops (Inghimasiyin), who know, by now, their fate after all their pitty fighting on the eastern bank of Mosul.

ISIL’s spirits is down, and we should witness the fall of many neighborhoods at the western bank. 

What are the neighborhoods on the western bank of Mosul?

1- Musheirifa

2- Musheirifa Al-Ula

3- Musheirifa Al-Thaniya

4- Hawi Al-Kanisa

5- 17 Tammoz

6- Al-Iqtisadiyin

7- Al-Harmat

8- Al-Uraibi

9- Al-Najjar

10- Al-Rifa’i

11- Al-Islah Al-Zira’i

12- Sina’at Al-Abwab wa Al-Shababik

13- Sina’at Wadi Iqab

14- Hai Al-Tanak

15- Al-Zinijilli

16- Al-Shifaa

17- Al-Sihha, Al-Thaura

18- Sina’at Ghanim Al-Sayid

19- Al-Uruba

20- Al-Abar

21- Hadayiq Al-Yarmuk

22- Al-Mosul Al-Qadima (Old Mosul, consists of Al-Faruq and Bab Jidid)

23- Al-Danadan

24- Al-Dawasa

25- Al-Nabi Shiit

26- Al-Akayidat

27- Al-Mahatta

28- Mosul Al-Jadida

29- Al-Risala

30- Nablis

31- Rajm Al-Hadid

32- Al-Jusaq

33- Al-Tayaran

34- Al-Ghuzlani

35- Al-Naft

36- Al-Amil

37- Al-Amil Al-Thani

38- Wadi Al-Ain Al-Janubiya

39- Wadi Hajar

40- Al-Mansur

41- Al-Shuhada’

42- Tal Al-Rumman

43- Hawi Al-Jusaq

44- Matar Al-Mosul (Mosul Airport)

45- Al-Harakiya wa Al-Ghabat

46- Ma’amil Al-Banjar wa Al-Sukkar

47- Dur Al-Sukkar

48- Muaskar Al-Ghuzlani (Al-Ghuzlani camp)

49- Al-Ma’mun

 

Mosul Eye launched its book donation campaign to revive Mosul’s libraries ..

All Books are Welcomed

All Disciplines of Knowledge are Welcomed

All Languages are Welcomed.

Should you make a donation, Kindly register your donations with US at the link below:

 

Campaign – Book and Literature Donations to the libraries of Mosul

​Dear respected Mr. Haider Al-Abadi,

Good day to you,

I’m writing to you in English hoping that you might react to this message faster than the Arabic message!

In an unprecedented conditions, the eastern bank of Mosul is now liberated and free. The outcomes were outstanding by all measures. Our main concern of any violations committed by the military forces has diminished entirely when the Golden Brigade behaved in a highly humane and brave manner. The residents celebrated with the military the victory of clean and great battle, where the finest of Iraq’s youth, both civilians and soldiers, were sacrificed in this war.

Two and a half years where the city was dying under ISIL’s control, and the moment the military forces entered the city, all fear, tiredness and horror the Mosulis lived was gone.

We understand that there are many major difficulties to rebuild the city, and this require logistics, planning, and time to implement them, but Mr. Abadi, the reports we report every day about violations committed by entities considered part of the Iraqi State, has no goal but to ruin this victory that was made at the cost of the iraqi blood and tears. How would you allow such a deformation to steal our joy of victory from us? Many check points at the eastern bank and many areas people are getting humiliated, and large numbers of families decided to leave the city fearing uncertainty, possible violations, houses were robbed, young men being humiliated stupidly by members of the military forces in Mosul. All of this and the operations to liberate the western bank has not yet started! No proper security checking, no clear system to track down ISIL members and punish them! The residents on the eastern bank see ISIL members wondering freely in the liberated areas! Many times the residents report them to the security forces, but in a couple of days, they are released! We are receiving many reports that a huge corruption is undergoing now and many ISIL members’ names have been erased from the databases in exchange for huge sums of money!

In your opinion Mr. Abadi, who is after all this? And why do you allow them to steal our victory? 

I urge you to review what is happening in Mosul now and to take an action, taking into account the current circumstances that has become very dire and critical.

We all stand with you in this battle l, but also, we would like to remind you that the Mosulis gaining trust in the military forces occurred  miraculously, and we cannot afford to lose it again. 
With all respect and regards
Mosul Eye