A few hundred
civilians have fled their homes in the outskirts of western Mosul, the first
reported displacement since a U.S.-backed offensive on the jihadists' remaining
stronghold there began at the weekend.
A Reuters
correspondent saw about 200 women and children being transported on buses by
federal police on Wednesday to the town of Hammam al-Alil, some 20 km (12
miles) south of Mosul, where camps have been set up.
They said they
had fled heavy bombardment in two villages near Mosul's airport, which is now
in the crosshairs of Iraqi forces and could become a close support base for the
push deeper into the city.
The federal
police and elite Interior Ministry units known as Rapid Response have made
quick progress towards western Mosul in a sweep from the south through hilly
desert terrain since fighting resumed on Sunday.
They have been
advancing so far in sparsely populated areas, but the fighting is expected to
get tougher as they enter the city itself and the risk to roughly 750,000
civilians there will rise.
Up to 400,000
people could be displaced from western Mosul where residents are already
suffering food and fuel shortages and many markets have closed, according to
the United Nations.
Western Mosul
contains the old city center, with its ancient souks, government administration
buildings and the mosque from which Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
proclaimed his self-styled caliphate over parts of Syria and Iraq after rapid
advances in 2014.
Islamic State
is essentially under siege in western Mosul after being driven out of districts
east of the Tigris river in 100 days of heavy fighting that ended a month ago.
About 160,000
civilians have been displaced from the Mosul area since the start of the battle
in October, U.N. officials say. Many more people have remained in their homes
despite the violence.
*REUTERS*
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