Iraq forces foil Daesh attempt to flee to Syria

Baghdad: Iraqi forces have thwarted an attempt by around 200 Daesh fighters to flee their bastion of Tal Afar towards Syria, west of the city of Mosul, a security spokesman said Monday.

Forces from the Hashed Al Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation), a paramilitary organisation dominated by Shiite militia groups, claimed Daesh used tanks in their bid to break out of Tal Afar.

“The attack by Daesh started at around 7:00 pm (1600 GMT on Sunday), the fighting lasted around six hours,” their spokesman Ahmad Al Assadi told AFP.

Hashed forces have been deployed in desert areas west of Mosul since federal forces launched a massive operation to retake the city from Daesh on October 17.

Their main goals are to retake Tal Afar, a Turkmen-majority city which is still held by Daesh, and to prevent the militants from being able to move men and equipment between Mosul and their strongholds in Syria.