19 October 2016, 20:58 GMT
ALEPPO (Sputnik) — According to Al Mayadeen channel, the group of Daesh commanders moved to the Syrian border, as the Iraqi air forces continue to monitor the area to the west of Mosul.
The start of the military operation to retake Mosul from Daesh, which seized it in June 2014, was announced by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Abadi on Monday.
According to local media, about 30,000 Iraqi soldiers and 4,000 Kurdish Peshmerga fighters are taking part in the operation. They are backed by the US-led international coalition's airstrikes.
Saad Hadithi, Abadi's spokesman, said on Wednesday that the operation was progressing faster than expected.
