As Mosul's battlefield shrinks, US warns of friendly fire

[TomSea]

Jul. 1, 2017 9:22 AM ET
As Mosul's battlefield shrinks, US warns of friendly fire
 THE ASSOCIATED PRESS STATEMENT OF NEWS VALUES AND PRINCIPLES By SUSANNAH GEORGE

MOSUL, Iraq (AP) — U.S. Army Col. Pat Work and a small team of about a dozen soldiers drove through western Mosul in two unmarked armored vehicles. Iraq's Prime Minister had just declared the end of the Islamic State group's caliphate the day before, but the fighting still raging on as Iraqi forces prepared for another big push Saturday morning.

The American Colonel had a series of urgent calls to make: to talk face-to-face with generals from the Iraqi Army, the federal police and the Iraqi special forces. While the gains in the Old City are bringing Iraqi troops closer to victory against IS in Mosul, they also mean three branches of the country's security forces are now fighting in closer quarters than ever before. The new battle space and lingering communication shortcomings mean Iraqi ground troops are at increased risk of being hit by non-precision fires like mortars and artillery by their partner Iraqi forces, he explained.

Throughout the course of the day Work shuttled between bases and command centers inside the city meeting with Iraqi commanders deep inside Mosul, underscoring the increasingly prominent U.S. role in the offensive as it enters its final days.

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