Iraqi PM vows imminent ‘victory’ against terrorists in Mosul

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has pledged triumph in the near future over terrorists in the northern city of Mosul, the last major city under control of the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group in the Middle Eastern country.

“Today we are close to you, and you are close to us, and victory is near, with God’s help,” Abadi said in a radio address to Mosul residents on Tuesday.

He stressed that the Iraqi forces were making gains, saying, “Today we are advancing and tomorrow we will be victorious together, and then we will work together to bring back life and services and stability to every city and village.”

The Iraqi premier further urged Mosul residents to cooperate with the Iraqi security forces as they were closer than ever to being rescued from Daesh violence.

The Iraqi army is gearing up for a major offensive to purge Daesh from Mosul. Iraqi forces have managed to wrest control of several areas from terrorists in the southern parts of the city.

Baghdad has not announced a specific date for the beginning of the operation, but some Western officials have indicated it could begin this month.

Many believe that the recapture of Mosul, which fell to Daesh in 2014, would signal the terror outfit’s defeat in Iraq.

Iraqi MPs slam Turkish forces’ presence in Arab country

In another development on Tuesday, the Iraqi parliament condemned Turkey’s recent extension of mandate for its troops in Iraq and Syria.

Last December, Turkey deployed some 150 soldiers, equipped with heavy weapons and backed by 20 to 25 tanks, to the outskirts of Mosul. Ankara claimed the deployment was part of a mission to train and equip Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces in the fight against Daesh, but Baghdad denounced the unauthorized move as a violation of Iraq’s national sovereignty.

The Iraqi lawmakers have called on the Iraqi government to cut its economic ties with Ankara and summon the Turkish ambassador to Baghdad, urging the government to consider the Turkish military forces in Iraq as an occupation force and undertake the required measures to force them out.

Back in August, Turkey launched its offensive in Syria, dubbed “Euphrates Shield,” with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan saying it was aimed at Daesh and the Democratic Union Party (PYD), a US-backed Kurdish group based in Syria. Damascus, however, denounced the intervention as a breach of its sovereignty.