28 October 2014

In Mosul yesterday, a university professor and his son were publicly executed in the Shifa'a district of western Mosul by ISIL gunmen. Our sources reported that the professor and his son were detained 3 months ago and they were killed in a public square without explanation.

Also yesterday, ISIL arrested 7 journalists in a number of districts. They were taken to unknown locations, again without any explanation. They had not been working, but journalists are usually held responsible for news filtering out of Mosul, based simply on suspicion and not on any evidence.

Peshmerga forces are still advancing in Zummar, but their progress is hampered by the ubiquitous mines and IED's along the roads leading to Zummar and its surroundings.

Mosul is its twentieth consecutive day of darkness because of the failed power supply.

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.