10 November 2016, 23:23 GMT
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – US-led international coalition forces killed a senior commander of the Islamic State terrorist group (ISIL or Daesh) during an operation aimed at liberating the jihadist stronghold of Mosul, media reported on Friday.
Iraqi military intelligence sources confirmed that Tuesday’s coalition airstrike on Daesh positions in western Mosul resulted in death of Daesh high-ranking commander Mahmoud Shukri Nuaimi, who allegedly used to be an officer in Saddam Hussein's intelligence services, CNN broadcaster reported.
The broadcaster’s sources added that two civilians were killed as the Daesh militants attempted to attack Iraqi forces.
The Daesh terrorist group, outlawed in Russia and multiple other states, overran the northern Syrian city of Mosul in 2014 and declared a caliphate in the captured territories. The Iraqi prime minister announced a campaign on October 17 to reclaim the key Daesh stronghold, with mixed forces of Iraqi army, Kurdish militias and Sunni Arab tribesmen advancing from south, east and north.
According to local media, about 30,000 Iraqi soldiers and 4,000 Kurdish Peshmerga fighters are taking part in the operation, backed by airstrikes carried out by the US-led international coalition.
