Operation against IS in Tal Afar will be relatively simple: Iraqi general

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – The fight to liberate Tal Afar from the Islamic State (IS) will be "relatively simple," according to a senior Iraqi army general.

Major General Najm al-Jabouri said he predicts the upcoming offensive to reclaim Tal Afar from IS will be "easy" because the fighters are “worn out and demoralized.”

“I don’t expect it will be a fierce battle even though the enemy is surrounded,” he told Reuters.

Tal Afar is located about 40 kilometers (25 miles) west of Mosul, Iraq's second largest city which Iraqi forces recently liberated from IS extremists after nearly ten months of intense clashes.

Jabouri, who was the former mayor of Tal Afar, said the fight to free the area wouldn’t be as complicated or as long as the Mosul operation.

“The enemy is very worn out,” he explained. “I know from the intelligence reports that their morale is low.”

The Maj. Gen. predicted there were around 1,500 to 2,000 IS militants left in Tal Afar, including family members.

“It’s a large number, but the terrain is favorable [to Iraqi forces],” Jabouri said comparing it to the narrow streets of Mosul’s Old City where troops were forced to advance on foot.

The Iraqi general also pointed to the small number of civilians in the city compared to Mosul where hundreds of thousands of people were held hostage by the militant group.

According to Jabouri, Iraqi forces are ready and waiting for orders from Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to launch the operation.

“Perhaps it will be in days, or a week, or two,” he anticipated.

The US-led coalition has conducted air strikes in and around Tal Afar, paving the way for Iraqi troops to enter the city.

Editing by G.H. Renaud