Kurdish forces were withdrawing from Kirkuk on Monday as Iraqi federal forces moved into the disputed city and seized oil fields and other infrastructure amid soaring tensions over last month's Kurdish vote for independence.
Iraqi forces on Tuesday said they were making gains in their ongoing push to dislodge fighters from the Daesh (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group from the northern city of Tal Afar, as the Pentagon chief made a surprise visit to Iraq in a show of support.
Iraqi forces are to deploy new tactics in a fresh push against Deash (Islamic State) in Mosul, military officials said on Friday, after advances slowed in the campaign to drive the militants out of their last stronghold in the country.
Iraqi officials said on Monday government forces had taken complete control of eastern Mosul, 100 days after the start of their U.S.-backed campaign to dislodge Daesh (Islamic State) militants from the city.
Iraqi forces fought their way into more districts of Mosul but advances in the city's southeast were being slowed by Deash's use of civilians for cover, military officials said on Tuesday.
Iraqi special Forces closed in on the Tigris river that runs through central Mosul on Saturday, advancing in parallel with other troops and forcing Daesh to retreat in its last major stronghold in the country.
Iraqi forces on Friday entered the center of Fallujah, the Iraqi city longest held by terrorist group of Daesh (IS) , nearly four weeks after the start of a U.S.-backed offensive that cleared out the tens of thousands of residents still there; reuters reported.
