Iraq commander says forces control Mosul-Tal Afar road

Iraqi soldiers are in control of the road linking west Mosul with the Islamic State group-held town of Tal Afar, isolating jihadists in the city, a senior commander said today.
Iraqi forces are battling inside west Mosul to retake it from IS in a major push launched on February 19, but have also moved through the surrounding desert to cut the area off from Tal Afar and increase pressure on the jihadists.
"We control the road by fire," said Staff Lieutenant General Qassem al-Maliki, the commander of Iraq's 9th Armoured Division.
Maliki said that while his soldiers have not reached the road, they can fire on targets on it, putting it under their effective control.

A team of US soldiers has been working with the 9th Division for nearly two months, including during their push through the desert to the Mosul-Tal Afar road.
IS overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014, but Iraqi forces backed by US-led air strikes and other support have since regained most of the territory they lost.
The operation to retake Mosul -- the last IS-held city in the country -- was launched on October 17.