While the Syrian Army has fully recaptured Deir ez-Zor, the largest city in eastern Syria, from Daesh, the Iraqi military has started its final assault on the terrorists’ last bastion in Iraq.
The operation involves 40,000 Iraqi soldiers, Sunni tribal forces and Iranian-backed Popular Mobilisation force. They overcame the terrorists’ first line of defense on the Husseiba – Karabil line and entered the city, taking the nearby heights.
According to the Shiite militia, during the first hours of the offensive, it successfully managed to attack a number of settlements directly adjacent to the city of al-Qaim.
On Thursday, the troops established control over 85% of the border area.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi last week announced the launch of an operation to liberate the cities of al Qaim and Rawa, calling them the last bulwarks of terrorists in the country. The cities are in the province of Anbar in the west of Iraq, near the Syrian border.
In October, the Iraqi army completed the liberation of the city of El-Havidzh in the province of Kirkuk, the former headquarters of the Daesh terrorists in the country.
In September, the Iraqi armed forces launched an operation to liberate the city of Akashat, which is located in the west of Iraq — near al Qaim.