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| Iraq announces offensive against IS in western Mosul | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has announced the start of an offensive to drive so-called Islamic State out of the western part of Mosul. | Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has announced the start of an offensive to drive so-called Islamic State out of the western part of Mosul. |
| Government troops and allied militia retook the eastern side of the city, the last major IS stronghold in Iraq, earlier this year. | Government troops and allied militia retook the eastern side of the city, the last major IS stronghold in Iraq, earlier this year. |
| But the western side, with its narrow streets, may prove a bigger challenge. | But the western side, with its narrow streets, may prove a bigger challenge. |
| The UN has warned that the safety of hundreds of thousands of civilians trapped in the city is a key priority. | The UN has warned that the safety of hundreds of thousands of civilians trapped in the city is a key priority. |
| Leaflets warning residents of an imminent offensive were earlier dropped over the west of the city. | |
| "We announce the start of a new phase in the operation, we are coming to Nineveh to liberate the western side of Mosul," Mr Abadi said in a televised speech, referring to the province of which Mosul is the capital. | |
| "Our forces are beginning the liberation of the citizens from the terror of Daesh [IS]," he added, quoted by AFP news agency. | |
| Iraqi forces have now all but surrounded the western part of Mosul, while the US-led coalition has been carrying out air strikes on IS targets. | |
| Winning the city back has never been just about the military objective of driving IS out of its stronghold, the BBC's Sebastian Usher says. | |
| Minimising civilian casualties and avoiding reprisals will be key to regaining the trust of the city's population in the Iraqi state itself, he adds. | |
| The UN humanitarian co-ordinator for Iraq, Lise Grande, told the BBC on Saturday that "all of the parties to the conflict do absolutely everything they can to ensure that civilians survive the battle, and that they live". | |
| "Absolutely nothing is more important going into the campaign to retake western Mosul," she added. | |
| The operation to drive the militant group from the city started in October but government forces only managed to secure the eastern part last month after fierce fighting. |