Iraqi troops in Mosul for anti-Al Qaida initiative

Mosul: Army reinforcements arrived in Iraq on Sunday in preparation for a major initiative to flush out Al Qaida in Iraq fighters from their last urban stronghold, Mosul, said an Iraqi officer.

Major General Riyad Jalal, a senior officer in the Mosul region, said the additional forces had arrived at an Iraqi base and would begin operations against Al Qaida fighters "immediately after all the added troops arrive."

Defense Ministry spokesman Mohammed Al Askari confirmed that most of the army reinforcements
had reached Mosul, Iraq's third largest city.

Iraqi and US officials have not disclosed the number of additional soldiers that would be arriving at Mosul, where 38 people were killed and 200 wounded in a massive bomb attack last week.