IS 'shave beards' as pressure builds on Mosul road with elite force

Islamic State group fighters were shaving their beards and changing hideouts in Mosul, residents said, as Iraqi forces moved ever closer to the city Wednesday and civilians fled in growing numbers.

Reached by AFP inside Mosul, several residents said the jihadists seemed to be preparing for an assault after recent advances on the eastern front brought elite Iraqi forces to within five kilometres of city limits.

"I saw some Daesh (IS) members and they looked completely different from the last time I saw them," said a resident of eastern Mosul who gave his name as Abu Saif.

"They had trimmed their beards and changed their clothes," the former businessman said. "They must be scared, they are also probably preparing to escape the city."

[caption id="attachment_25165" align="aligncenter" width="800"] A member of the Iraqi forces talks to families fleeing the ongoing operation by Iraqi forces against jihadists of the Islamic State group to retake the city of Mosul, are seen gathering in an area near Qayyarah on October 24, 2016. AFP[/caption]

Residents and military officials said many IS fighters had relocated from eastern Mosul to their traditional bastions on the western bank of the Tigris river, closer to escape routes to Syria.

The sounds of fighting on the northern and eastern fronts of the Mosul offensive could now be heard inside the city, residents said, and US-led coalition aircraft were flying lower over the city than usual.

Tens of thousands of Iraqi fighters have been advancing on Mosul from the south, east and north after an offensive was launched on October 17 to retake the last major Iraqi city under IS control.

The assault is being backed with air and ground support from the US-led coalition which launched its campaign against IS two years ago, shortly after the jihadists seized control of large parts of Iraq and Syria.

Wave of displaced

Iraqi federal forces, allied with Kurdish peshmerga fighters, have taken a string of towns and villages in a cautious but steady advance over the last week in the face of shelling, sniper fire and suicide car bombings.

Some 3,000 to 5,000 IS fighters are believed to be inside Mosul, Iraq's second city, alongside more than a million trapped civilians.

Aid workers have warned of a major potential humanitarian crisis once fighting begins inside the city itself.

An Iraqi minister said Wednesday that more than 3,300 civilians fleeing the fighting had sought help from the government the day before, the most for a single day so far.

There was "a big wave of displaced people that is considered the greatest number since the start of the military operation to liberate Nineveh province," Displacement and Migration Minister Jassem Mohammed al-Jaff said in a statement.

[caption id="attachment_25167" align="aligncenter" width="800"] An Iraqi man reacts as families, who were displaced by the ongoing operation by Iraqi forces against jihadists of the Islamic State group to retake the city of Mosul, wait for food near Qayyarah on October 24, 2016. AFP[/caption]

Numbers of displaced residents were growing but stood at a relatively low 8,940 on Wednesday, according to a UN tally, because most of the fighting so far has taken place in sparsely populated areas.

Civilians in villages on the eastern outskirts of Mosul were being bused to a camp near Khazir, an AFP correspondent reported.

"The army made us get out, they told us to leave and said we would see about the details of our settlement" in a camp, said Umm Ali, a 35-year-old woman.

"We used to live in terror night and day, the shelling was coming closer. The Islamic State controlled our lives, so we decided to flee," said Essam Saadou, a 22-year-old student.

A wave of displaced residents was also expected Wednesday from Al-Shura, an IS stronghold between Mosul and Qayyarah, the main staging base on the southern front, federal police said.

Sights set on Raqa

As the noose tightened on Mosul, 13 defence chiefs from the 60-nation coalition meeting in Paris set their sights on Syria's Raqa, which would be the last major city under IS control if it loses Mosul.

"We have already begun laying the groundwork for our partners to commence the isolation of Raqa," US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter said after the talks.

The coalition, which also includes Britain and France, has provided support in the form of thousands of air strikes, training for Iraqi forces and advisers on the ground.

France said Wednesday it had extended the mission of its aircraft carrier, the Charles de Gaulle, in the eastern Mediterranean until at least mid-December to help the offensive on Mosul.

President Francois Hollande decided to extend the mission after France's defence council "reviewed the military, humanitarian, political and security stakes involved in the recapture of Mosul," a statement issued by his office said.

Leaders in Paris on Tuesday also discussed the post-IS future of Mosul, which is an ethnically and religiously mixed region and where achieving a political compromise might prove even harder than a military victory.

[caption id="attachment_25168" align="aligncenter" width="800"] A member of the Iraqi forces holds a rocket propelled grenade launcher at the al-Shura area, south of Mosul, on October 24, 2016, during an operation to retake the main hub city from the IS jihadists. AFP[/caption]

Mosul with elite force's 'cleaners'

After crosses were restored and flags raised in this Christian town near Mosul, elite units stayed behind for one of the least gratifying and most dangerous jobs in the war: the clean-up.

Constantly scanning their surroundings, five special forces members moved carefully down the streets of Bartalla, the muzzles of their rifles continuously shifting in every direction.

To provide cover, the gunners of four armoured vehicles moving in a convoy sprayed heavy fire around them as they moved slowly down two strips of asphalt.

"We're targeting suspect buildings and corners where we don't have good visibility," said Colonel Mustafa, adding that they also usually open fire on perpendicular streets in case snipers are lurking there.

These members of the counter-terrorism service (CTS) -- widely seen as Iraq's best fighting force -- are already first in line when Islamic State group jihadists have to be taken on in close combat.

But after a road, village or town has been secured and declared retaken, they criss-cross the area to sniff out snipers, enemies concealed in tunnels, car bombs and booby-traps.

"After liberating surrounding areas," a CTS officer who gave his name as Nabil told AFP in Bartalla, "we came back the other way to clean up the road."

This kind of mission is particularly dangerous because the bulk of their own force has already moved on to the next front and they have very little back-up.

Their protective gear is rudimentary and they disappear into tunnels wearing tee-shirts to hunt jihadists who might be hiding there.

Moment Iraqi M1 #AbramsTank hit by ISIS Kornet guided missile near Mosul: https://t.co/DIuaGIqRaf pic.twitter.com/MGPiEJRpR6

— RT (@RT_com) October 26, 2016

Coalition support

"Their planes gather coordinates and send them to our commanders, who then pass them on to us. All we have to do then is to get to them with our vehicles," said Sergeant Amr, a radio to his ear and a tablet in his hand. Next to him, the armoured vehicle's driver followed his instructions to support the men walking towards a building they wanted to inspect. Above them, the gunner in his turret loads his ammunition. "Left, right, turn and fire," Sergeant Amr said. A barrage of gunfire was unleased, several shots on every identified position, to check there was no return fire or explosion. Sergeant Amr, a 27-year-old from Baghdad who joined the front line a month ago, just a day after his wedding, then briefly got out of his vehicle to confer with the unit moving on foot. "We have EOD (explosive ordnance disposal) specialists -- they are the ones looking for IEDs (improvised explosive devices)," said Hamza, a CTS fighter wearing a scarf and an "Iraq special forces" cap. "If they spot a car bomb, we come in to neutralise it," said the young man, who has already spent six years with CTS. That is usually done by a controlled detonation. "Job done! Mission over," Sergeant Amr finally exclaimed, putting down his radio.

Islamic State Terrorists 'Shave Beards', Prepare to Flee Mosul https://t.co/9bNHVHkTOc pic.twitter.com/lTmxNH6pEn — Voice of Europe (@V_of_Europe) October 26, 2016