Why is US overseeing an Iraqi offensive to retake Mosul?
A joint Iraqi-Kurdish military force of up to 25,000 fighters is being prepared to retake the Iraqi city of Mosul from Islamic State, a US official says.
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The Iraqi and Kurdish military force of some 20,000 to 25,000 troops is expected to capture the city in the April-May time frame, an official at the US Central Command revealed.
The official said Mosul was currently being held by 1,000 to 2,000 Islamic State fighters. No decision has been made on whether small numbers of US military advisers might need to be on the ground close to Mosul to direct close air support, the official told reporters on the condition of anonymity.
According to Reuters, the main attack force being assembled for the Mosul campaign would include five Iraqi army brigades. Three smaller brigades would act as a reserve force, and three brigades of Kurdish peshmerga troops would contain the city from the north and isolate it from Islamic State forces further west.
A so-called Mosul fighting force consisting mainly of former Mosul police officers and tribal fighters also is being assembled for the assault, the official said. A brigade of counter-terrorism troops would also be employed in the fight, he said, adding if Iraqi forces were not ready by April or May the operation could be delayed.
Details of the plan were revealed after reports emerged that a teenage British soldier had left his base in Cyprus to join Kurdish pershmerga forces fighting militants from the Islamic State group.
Read more: Teenage British soldier 'joins Kurds to fight IS'
Asked why the US military were openly stating the timing of the offensive, the official said it was a reflection of the confidence of Iraq, which had devised the battle plan.
It’s going to be a difficult fight. US Central Command
“They are absolutely committed to this. There are a lot of pieces that have to come together and we want to make sure the conditions are right. But this is their plan. They have bought into it. They are moving forward as if they will execute in the time frame that I just described,” the US defence department said citing the official.
“Mosul will not be easy,” he said. “It’s going to be a difficult fight.”
Mosul, in northern Iraq, is home to around 2 million people.