Battle for Mosul begins: Iraqi and Kurdish forces launch assault on Isis stronghold

In an address on state television, Iraq’s Haider al-Abadi said: “We have been battling Isis for more than two years. We started fighting Isis in the outskirts of Baghdad, and thank God we are now fighting them in the outskirts of Mosul, and God willing the decisive battle will be soon.”

“These forces that are liberating you today, they have one goal in Mosul which is to get rid of Daesh and to secure your dignity. They are there for your sake,” he said.

The thuds of sporadic artillery shelling rumbled across the rolling Nineveh plains in the direction of Mosul, witnesses said. State TV broadcast patriotic music within minutes of the announcement.

After a month-long buildup, the last urban stronghold of Islamic State in Iraq has for several days been almost completely surrounded by a 30,000-strong force.

Iraqi forces, which have driven hundreds of miles for what Baghdad has hailed as a last battle against the terrorist group, moved into their final positions on Friday, joining Kurdish peshmerga soldiers before an expected advance from the south. Also on the ground are US, British and French special forces, which have been advising the peshmerga and will play a prominent role in calling in airstrikes against Isis targets inside the city.

Photograph: Khalid Mohammed/AP 

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