Iraq forces retake centre of IS bastion Hawija

BAGHDAD: Iraqi forces said Thursday they had retaken the centre of the Islamic State group stronghold of Hawija, one of the jihadists' last enclaves in the country, reports AFP. Troops, police and paramilitaries "liberated the whole of the centre of Hawija and are continuing their advance," the operation's commander, Lieutenant General Abdel Amir Yarallah, said.

Government and allied forces launched an offensive last month to oust IS from Hawija, a longtime insurgent bastion. The town is among the final holdouts from the territory seized by the jihadists in 2014 and its recapture would leave only a handful of remote outposts in IS hands.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi met French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Thursday for talks on the campaign against IS, which is backed by a US-led coalition including France.

The United Nations said this week that an estimated 12,500 people had fled Hawija since the launch of the offensive to retake the town and surrounding areas last month.

The UN's humanitarian affairs office said the number of people still in the town was unknown but could be as high as 78,000.

It said humanitarian agencies have set up checkpoints, camps and emergency sites capable of receiving more than 70,000 people who could flee.

The Norwegian Refugee Council said many of those arriving in the camps had little more than the clothes on their backs.

"In addition to the terror they have experienced during years under the control of the IS group, many of the families who are arriving are malnourished," its acting area manager, Silvia Beccacece, said.

Coalition spokesman Ryan Dillon hailed the latest advance on Twitter, saying Iraqi forces were continuing "to crush ISIS in Hawija pocket" and that Abadi's pledge to "liberate all Iraqi territory and to cleanse it from terrorists" was "close".

Iraq forces retake centre of IS bastion Hawija

BAGHDAD: Iraqi forces said Thursday they had retaken the centre of the Islamic State group stronghold of Hawija, one of the jihadists last enclaves in the country, reports AFP. Troops, police and paramilitaries liberated the whole of the centre of Hawija and are continuing their advance, the operations commander, Lieutenant General Abdel Amir Yarallah, said. Government and allied forces launched an offensive last month to oust IS from Hawija, a longtime insurgent bastion. The town is among the final holdouts from the territory seized by the jihadists in 2014 and its recapture would leave only a handful of remote outposts in IS hands. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi met French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Thursday for talks on the campaign against IS, which is backed by a US-led coalition including France. The United Nations said this week that an estimated 12,500 people had fled Hawija since the launch of the offensive to retake the town and surrounding areas last month. The UNs humanitarian affairs office said the number of people still in the town was unknown but could be as high as 78,000. It said humanitarian agencies have set up checkpoints, camps and emergency sites capable of receiving more than 70,000 people who could flee. The Norwegian Refugee Council said many of those arriving in the camps had little more than the clothes on their backs. In addition to the terror they have experienced during years under the control of the IS group, many of the families who are arriving are malnourished, its acting area manager, Silvia Beccacece, said. Coalition spokesman Ryan Dillon hailed the latest advance on Twitter, saying Iraqi forces were continuing to crush ISIS in Hawija pocket and that Abadis pledge to liberate all Iraqi territory and to cleanse it from terrorists was close.