Commander: US-made devices used to disable IS drones in Mosul

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan24) – The Kurdish Commander of the Iraqi Special Operations Forces on Tuesday stated with the help of the US army the Iraqi forces were able to tackle weaponized drones used by the Islamic State (IS) in Mosul.

In an interview with Kurdistan24, Commander of the Iraqi Special Operations Forces Fadhil Barwari said the US-made devices had successfully disabled the drones and prevented them from flying 50-100 meters above western Mosul.

“We were able to deal with the IS drones [on Monday] in a way that stopped them from flying,” Barwari told Kurdistan24.

“We took down six grenade-attached drones today by using the US-made devices,” the Commander added.

On the first day of the operation, IS launched 72 drone attacks against the security forces.

Additionally, Barwari pointed out the presence of civilians in the IS-held neighborhoods of Mosul appeared to be the last major obstacle in the fight against the insurgents.

The offensive to free Mosul from IS was launched by Peshmerga and Iraqi security forces on Oct. 17, 2016.

Since then, both forces have cooperated effectively to free several swaths of territory from the extremist group.

On Feb. 19, Iraqi forces began the offensive to free the western part of the city.

The operation is ongoing as the forces slowly advance and push the militant group from the south of the city.

IS extremists continue to block the progress of the security forces by attacking them using massive trenches and drones in western Mosul.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany