Peshmerga forces on Thursday captured several villages northeast of Mosul on the fourth day of a wide-ranging military campaign to "liberate" the city from the Daesh terrorist group, according to military sources.
"Our forces liberated 12 villages on three axes along which they are advancing on Mosul from the northeast," Younis Koran, a Peshmerga military officer, told Anadolu Agency.
Earlier this week, Iraqi forces, backed by U.S.-led coalition airstrikes, launched a much-anticipated offensive to retake Mosul -- Daesh’s last stronghold in northern Iraq, which was overrun by the terrorist group in mid-2014.
Six of the villages captured Thursday are located along the Nawran axis, five along the Bashiqa axis and one along the Tel Saqf axis, Koran said.
"With the liberation of Khorsabad village on the Nawran axis, Peshmerga forces now stand 12 kilometers north of Mosul," said Koran.
According to a Peshmerga source who spoke to Anadolu Agency on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to media, the advance is being supported by U.S.-led coalition air power.