Ali H. M.Abo Rezeg
24 October 2016•Update: 24 October 2016
By Jamal Badrani
NINEVEH, Iraq
Iraqi forces on Monday swept into a predominantly Christian town south-east of Mosul in northern Iraq.
In a statement, the Iraqi army said its troops stormed the Karemlash town.
“The town is expected to be liberated [from Daesh] within the coming hours,” the army said.
Located less than 28 kilometers (18 miles) south-east of Mosul, Karemlash was historically an ancient Assyrian town in northern Iraq.
Last week, the Iraqi army, backed by U.S.-led coalition airstrikes, launched a much-anticipated operation to retake Mosul, the last Daesh stronghold in northern Iraq.
Daesh captured Iraq’s second largest city in mid-2014 before overrunning large swathes of territory in the country’s northern and western regions.
In recent weeks, the army and its allies have staged a gradual advance on the city, which officials in Baghdad have vowed to recapture by year’s end.
