Dozens killed in west Iraq air strike

“We thought we were going to die, all we could think about was saving our lives”, Pvt.

Saadi said the army was now occupying a position almost one kilometer (less than a mile) from the hospital, which a 9th Division commander said had been used by IS as a command centre.

“They are surrounded now in Al-Salam hospital. we are on the way so we can open a passage for them”, he said. Of the 100 or so Iraqi soldiers trapped there, almost all were killed or wounded, he said.

She said that some refugees from Mosul, northern Iraq’s largest city, who fled to Kurdistan already had to acquire new documents, and it often takes months. The battle for the al-Salam hospital highlights the challenges Iraqi forces face as they move deeper into the city. Cantlie says, shrugging and looking over his shoulder at the last intact bridge busy with traffic, and referring to the Arabic word for a fighter engaged in holy war.

“The strike hit a market at peak hour, there were retirees queueing up pick up their pension, people collecting salaries and social security payments”, Eid Ammash said.

Over the next 24 hours, the IS fighters unleashed 15 suicide vehicle bombs. The special forces further managed to wrest control of the al-Elam neighbourhood in eastern Mosul.

“The 9th Division’s situation is hard and they have called for support”.

The casualty toll for Friday’s attacks was provided by police and hospital officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief reporters.

It was unclear if the airstrike was carried out by the Iraqi air force or the USA -led worldwide coalition supporting the Baghdad government offensive against the Sunni extremist group.

Sources familiar with events on the ground have also informed MEMO that the hospital was still partially in use at the time, though it is unclear if there were any civilian casualties resulting from the coalition airstrike on the hospital. “Coalition air and artillery strikes continue to damage this enemy, engaging tactical units on the battlefield, vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices, supply routes, and excavating equipment in the past few days”. Anbar province and Iraqi Defense Ministry officials were not immediately available to comment.

The U.S. -led coalition has flown more than 125,000 sorties in Iraq and Syria since Operation Inherent Resolve began in August 8, 2014, the Pentagon reported in November.

The authenticity of the video could not be verified.

Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan said last week that the Liberal government now has no plans to deploy forces into Syria, but he left the door open to Canada joining other allies if such a course of action is decided upon.

“The opening of a new axis forces ISIL to react to that advance, reducing their ability to concentrate combat power on the eastern axis”, Dorrian said.