Our Mosul
sources are telling us that airstrikes have been continuing on the Zummar
township area, killing 17 ISIL gunmen and wounding 20, in addition to
destroying a number of their vehicles.
Yesterday, ISIL arrested 10 security commanders who had held
positions in the Iraqi army before the fall of Mosul. The men - even though they had
declared their 'repentance' when ISIL took the city - were arrested in villages
south of Mosul;
the reason for their arrest is unknown.
According to our sources, there has been public approval in Mosul over the appointment of Khaled Al-Obaidi - who is
from Mosul - as
the Minister of Defense. Hopes are being expressed that this move will bolster
the question of liberating the city.
Two ISIL gunmen were killed yesterday by the Mosul Brigades
who are resisting ISIL's occupation of their city.
Rain has been falling in Mosul for three consecutive days, resulting
in flooding in a number of the city's districts; drainage has been hampered by
the partial shutdown of the city's power- distribution network.
Many families spent the night out in the open, fearing that
the rain might bring down their tents. Theses displaced families are calling on
the Kurdistan Region and the central
government to provide them with caravan-style homes to replace their tents.
In Mosul,
the absence of running water and electricity has become the norm for the city's
residents: water is being supplied for one hour every other day. The Mosul
Provincial Council, and particularly its member, Husam Al-Abbar, yesterday
called on the Kurdistan Region and the
government to allow the Electrical Maintenance teams to go to the Mosul Dam to
repair the damage to the power generating systems, given that the area is still
being contested by both ISIL and the security forces. Clashes between the two
sides have been preventing the teams from reaching the dam area.