ISIS (Islamic State’s) oil operations are continuing to come under pressure from U.S.-led air strikes , while the Iraqi army is advancing toward the ISIS occupied city city of Mosul in the northern part of the country.
Iraqi troops moved toward al-Qayyara on Wednesday, in what media called the next front line in the Iraqi army’s military quest to dislodge ISIS from the sprawling city of Mosul. ISIS has controlled the Qayyara oil field near Mosul since the city fell two years ago. Until recently, ISIS controlled about half a dozen oil producing fields in Iraq.
The Iraqis are just a couple of kilometers away from the town center and about 60 kilometers from Mosul, CNN reported. According to the Iraqis, they will liberate Mosul by the end of the year. But it will be a long hard fight. ISIS is trying to decrease the visibility of the advancing Iraqi army by burning oil tankers and flooding the air with smoke. – READ MORE