Iraq: 500 civilians evacuated from western Mosul

By Idris Okuducu

MOSUL

At least 500 civilians have been evacuated from western Mosul in the last 24 hours, an Iraqi army officer told Anadolu Agency on Thursday.

Many of the civilians were injured while fleeing the Old City district where there are clashes between Daesh and the Iraqi army, Col. Ahmad Hashim said.

The Iraqi army on Wednesday recaptured two more neighborhoods in western Mosul from the Daesh terrorist group, according to an Iraqi army commander.

But Daesh still controls a number of neighborhoods where tens of thousands of civilians are stuck in residences.

The Iraqi military remains engaged in a wide-ranging campaign -- which began last October -- to recapture Mosul.

In mid-2014, Daesh overran the city, which now represents the embattled terrorist group’s last stronghold in northern Iraq.