Surrounded and attacked, many IS commanders fled Mosul

A US general says they have spotted IS leaders fleeing Mosul after Iraqi forces launched a large-scale operation to retake the city.

Liberation forces attack a village on the outskirts of Mosul. Photo: AFP

"We have informed the IS militants that their leaders are abandoning them. We have seen many IS commanders moving out of Mosul," AFP quoted Major General Gary Volesky, commander of US forces in Iraq, as saying on October 19.

General Volesky declined to give further information on the number of IS commanders fleeing and their destinations, confirming that the coalition had conducted airstrikes against the formations of fighters leaving Mosul.

Mr Volesky predicts that the remaining IS militants in Mosul will coalesce into a larger group, as they have nowhere else to go.

Iraqi security forces are closely monitoring and checking Mosul residents leaving the city to prevent militants from blending in with civilians to escape.

On October 17, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi launched a general offensive to liberate the strategic city of Mosul from IS control.

The battle is expected to last several weeks or months. The liberation side has 30,000 troops, including Iraqi army, Kurdish Peshmerga militia and Sunni militia.

US military officials estimate there are 3,500-5,000 IS fighters in Mosul, which is considered the group's last stronghold in Iraq. IS has lost significant territory in the past two years, after being pushed out of the cities of Tikrit, Ramadi and Fallujah.

According to VNE