Iraqi forces recapturing al-Rutbah city from Daesh

By Suleiman al-Qubaisi

BAGHDAD

Iraqi forces are in the process of recapturing the western city of al-Rutbah from the Daesh terrorist group, military officials said Tuesday.

“Iraqi forces and tribal fighters have liberated a strategic bridge [in the city],” Anbar province police chief Maj. Gen. Hadi al-Rzayej told Anadolu Agency on Tuesday.

He said Iraqi forces had advanced into the city and liberated the city’s northern entrance.

Brig. Gen. Abdul-Amir al-Khazraji, a special forces deputy commander of the province, said Iraqi forces did not meet any resistance from Daesh militants.

“Iraqi forces are advancing to liberate all districts in the city,” he told Anadolu Agency.

He said Iraqi forces were working to defuse explosives and bombs planted by Daesh militants across the city.

Iraq has been dogged by rampant insecurity since 2014, when Daesh overran the northern city of Mosul and declared a self-styled "caliphate" in parts of Iraq and Syria.