The map depicts the results of the 10th day of military operations to liberate the Iraqi city of Mosul from the ISIS terrorist group. More about the military situation in Iraq can be found here.
Click to see the full-size map
Iraqi Map Update: Results of 10th Day of Battle for Mosul
Still a long long ways away. You have surround and put that city under siege first.
Then the battle actually “starts”…
Do they necessarily have to lay siege to it? I think a direct assault would spare more innocent lives.
Yes, they will have to siege it, and the siege will naturally occur anyways. ISIS is very well entrenched in mosul, much more so than they were in fallujah. Plus mosul is three times the size of fallujah with probably ten times the amount of fighters.
It will take months…. Even with round the clock air raids on a grand scale(think B-52’s).
Well, I look maps too as an amateur familiar with it. To me Mosul is divided in seperat sectors, which – C A N – be taken one by one. I hope so. Boats has been bombed as well…
Yes, they will take section by section. However, if they want to prevent reinforcements/supply from getting in, siege. Also, a siege will end up happening anyways because more than likely they will begin to penetrate one section, stall against stiff defenses, shift to something easier, penetrate, stall, shift, over and over until the city is encircled.
Unfortunately, attacks on “built-up” areas can drag on for months (Stalingrad, etc.). As long as IS has lines of communication (incl. reinforcements and supply) it can maintain resistance for months or even years and still evacuate much of its forces if it sees collapse near.
Agree. We dont know, what they have, only everything is optimized and we try to defeat that part of it.
You are right, but as I see it, this is one of the ways to do it. We have to rember its a not a town like fx Manbij or Al Bab,
To me those troops are more capable to do as they do. All will probatly fight har but many groups are too much their own and can only being koordinated as this – Like – We meet in center – and we might be first.
Better armies could do “Kesselslcht” meening cutting through and divede, then cutting throug and divede again.
Better more specialized armies could download some 1000 parashooters in center and might make a fast logostic collapse, but Mosul is too diveded and also too big for that.
Im for the knife according to Mosul, if they could and I was and are very frustrated when the Turks didnt too Al Bab from Al Rai right away – well why do the have so many vehicles and troops and use them that unsmart and make defence that easy.
The US has no interest in doing that.
They want ISIL to escape to Syria. . .
Of course they do — a tried and true strategy dating back 2500 years. “When you surround an army, leave an outlet free. Do not press a desperate foe too hard.”
― Sun Tzu, The Art of War
There’s a large civilian population and one can only imagine what ISIS rats would do to them if completely bottled up. It’s a 6-hour drive without traffic from Mosul to Raqa and they can think they’ll complete their journey but dead men tell no tales.
Furthermore I would say troops leaving Mosul shouldnt go that far. Could be better for them to construct an extra defense line east of Der El Zor.
Yes they say so. Make sense. More civilians will be alive.
But we dont know, because this is only the beginning. Troops already regrouping and You have to adjust. I also think its early to change that plan.