20 October 2014

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.

14 October 2014

Sources have confirmed that coalition warplanes yesterday struck targets south of Mosul; about 22 ISIL gunmen were killed.

Also yesterday, ISIL personnel abducted a number of journalists from Mosul; there has been an announcement that one of them, Muhannad Al-Ugaili, has been executed.

The Nineveh police commander, Khaled Al-Hamdani, announced yesterday that the Interior Ministry has approved the back salaries of police personnel who have reported to the training camp located near the Kurdistan Region where they will train for the liberation of Mosul. 5,000 personnel reported to the camp yesterday and it was announced that they would be paid their back salaries, as an incentive for others to report for training.

ISIL yesterday forbade students from Mosul - who wanted to take their exams in Kirkuk - to leave the city, fearing that they might join the resistance camps outside Mosul. They only allowed those who could designate a guarantor of their return following their exams in Kirkuk.

Civil services in Mosul are almost nonexistent; the streets are strewn with garbage because municipal workers have been slow in removing the piles of rubbish, a situation that has been ongoing ever since the fall of the city.