Human cost of Mosul battle rising

Iraqi and coalition forces launched the operation to liberate western Mosul, the most populated urban areas, from IS extremists on February 19. Since then the Iraqi forces have wrested back a series of neighbourhoods. Troops have also retaken the city’s airport, a sprawling military complex, the main government compound. The offensive is being waged from three directions advancing along the Tigris River.
On the flip side, the west Mosul fight has killed hundreds of civilians. A UN report says around 45,000 people have fled the fighting over the past week, a 22 percent increase from the previous week. The Mosul operation, which began in October 2016, has displaced about 330,000 people so far. Of those, only 72,000 have returned so far.
Although military leaders are optimistic that it’s only a matter of time until they uproot the extremists from the last major stronghold in Iraq, militants are positioning themselves to defend their dwindling so-called “caliphate” in Syria and wage an insurgent campaign in Iraq.
Mindful of the eventual fall of west Mosul, extremists are continuously changing their tactics. They want this to be a hard fight and are carrying out a tactical retreat at some places. The IS fighters are using hundreds of thousands of civilians as shields, making it difficult for Iraqi army to advance ahead. And senior IS leadership has escaped to regroup the fighters for the future offensive. West Mosul was declared a tough fight because of its narrow streets and alleyways that tanks and armoured vehicles
cannot drive through.
According to coalition estimate, more than 2,000 militants are holed up in western Mosul with 700,000 civilian. Those residents who are trapped are facing dwindling supplies of food and fuel. The civilian population is perhaps the main reason IS fighters have been able to hold out so long and turn Mosul into such a grueling battle. IS fighters are holding most of those civilians hostage as shields, while forcing some to flee as cover for their troops making the use of artillery and airpower difficult. It is causing the coalition forces a big delay as they are careful about civilian lives.
The Iraqi troops resumed Mosul operations after a one-day pause, amid growing concerns over an escalating civilian death toll. The offensive was halted after a report that suspected US-led coalition airstrikes killed more than 100 civilians at the IS-held al-Jadida district.
Intense bombardment could translate into deaths among residents. Airwars, an independent group that tracks casualties from the campaign, said several hundred civilians have been killed in March alone. Humanitarian and monitoring officials warned of increased civilian casualties in western Mosul due to the increased reliance on airstrikes and artillery.
The Iraqi troops have put their heart and soul into Mosul fight. In Mosul Iraqi army have the chance to prove their mettle two and a half years after they ran away from the fight abandoning their weapons. Mosul’s fall will be the biggest blow to IS fighters’ morale. It will break the extremists’ hold over territory in Iraq and ending its rule over half the ‘caliphate’.