Iraq declared 'victory' over Islamic State in Mosul

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Sunday declared victory in the “liberated” city of Mosul and congratulated the armed forces for their "victory" over Islamic State after eight months of urban warfare, bringing to an end, a 3-year-old jihadist rule in the city.  

The declaration comes after a grueling eight-month battle that has left large parts of Mosul in ruins, killed thousands of civilians and displaced nearly one million people. 

"The commander in chief of the armed forces (Prime Minister) Haider al-Abadi arrived in the liberated city of Mosul and congratulated the heroic fighters and Iraqi people for the great victory," his office said in a statement.

The militant's defeat in Mosul is a major blow for the radical Sunni Muslim group, which is also losing ground in its operational base in the Syrian city of Raqqa, where it has planned global attacks.

The group who vowed to "fight to the death" in Mosul resorted to sending women suicide bombers among the thousands of civilians who are emerging from the battlefield wounded, malnourished and fearful.

Iraq declared 'victory' over Islamic State in Mosul.

The victory in Mosul marks an epic milestone for the Iraqi security forces, who had crumbled in the face of an IS onslaught across Iraq in 2014.

ISIS swept across much of Iraq’s Sunni Arab heartland in a lightning offensive that year, proclaiming a self-styled “caliphate” straddling Iraq and neighbouring Syria.

The United States leads an international coalition that is backing the campaign against Islamic State in Mosul by conducting airstrikes against the militants and assisting troops on the ground. 

The Iraqi forces launched their campaign to recapture Mosul in October, 2016 seizing its eastern side in January and launching the battle for its western part in February 2017.