Story highlights
US Defense Secretary arrives in Erbil, southeast of Mosul
Peshmerga forces launch new offensive from Mosul's northeast
(CNN) —
ISIS executed 284 men and boys as coalition forces closed in on Mosul, an Iraqi intelligence source told CNN.
Those killed on Thursday and Friday had been rounded up near and in the city for use as human shields against attacks that are forcing ISIS out of the southern sections of Mosul, the source explained.
ISIS used a bulldozer to dump the corpses in a mass grave at the scene of the executions – Mosul’s defunct College of Agriculture in the north of the city, the intelligence source said.
The victims were all shot and some were children, said the source, who wanted anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media. CNN could not independently confirm the claim.
- US Defense Secretary Ash Carter arrived in Erbil on Sunday, after commenting that the Mosul operation was going to plan
- Peshmerga forces started an offensive from two fronts in Bashiqa, northeast of Mosul, the Peshmerga General Command said Sunday
- Prime Minister Abadi reiterated his view that Iraq does not need Turkey’s assistance in the battle
- Kurdish officials accused Sunni Arabs in Kirkuk of supporting ISIS a day after attacks killed dozens
- Iraqis displaced by the Mosul offensive are seeking shelter in camps, the UN refugee agency said
The Iraqi military intensified its offensive Saturday to retake Hamdaniya – also known as Qaraqosh – from ISIS, the Iraqi Joint Operations Command center said. Iraqi forces and a Christian paramilitary group entered the town Wednesday, but face fierce resistance from ISIS fighters, 200 of whom were killed in one day of clashes.
The city is about 15 kilometers (nine miles) southeast of Mosul.
Iraqi security forces and Peshmerga – as the Kurdish fighters are known – have made progress and isolated Hamdaniya, a US military official said in Baghdad, speaking on background.
Iraqi troops on Saturday entered the al-Askary neighborhood and liberated the mayor’s building and the main hospital, raising the Iraqi flag over those buildings, Lt. Gen. Qassim al-Maliky said.
At least 60 ISIS fighters have been killed since Friday when Iraqi security forces launched an attack on the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, Gov. Najmaldin Karim said.
“Life will be restored to normal in the next few hours” Karim said Sunday, adding that security checkpoints in the city would be reopened. He did not mention how many security forces and civilians were killed in the ISIS offensive.
What’s happening in Mosul?
Iraqi troops are also advancing toward Tal Kayf and plan on storming the Chaldean town, the Iraqi Joint Operations Command said Saturday.
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Hemn Baban/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
Iraqi army and militia forces arrive Thursday in Saleh village in the offensive to wrest Mosul from ISIS.
Tal Kayf is about 10 kilometers (six miles) north of Mosul.
It’s the closest Iraqi security forces have come to Mosul, a CNN analysis indicates.
The US military official said US and coalition aircraft were providing air support as needed Saturday. The official said land forces were working through “a hard outer crust,” and resistance would intensify as the offensive neared Mosul.
The official said ISIS fighters have infiltrated towns cleared earlier, including Bartella, requiring renewed efforts to combat them.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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FADEL SENNA/AFP/Getty Images
Members of the Iraqi federal police wave the country's flag as they celebrate in the Old City of Mosul on July 9, 2017. Iraq declared victory against ISIS forces in Mosul after a grueling monthslong campaign. The battle to reclaim Mosul, the last major ISIS stronghold in Iraq, has been underway since fall 2016.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Felipe Dana/AP
This injured girl was found by Iraqi forces as they advanced against ISIS militants in the Old City of Mosul on Monday, July 3. She was carried away for medical assistance.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Felipe Dana/AP
A suspected ISIS fighter is held in a basement while Iraqi forces continue to push for control of the Old City of Mosul on Monday, July 3.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Felipe Dana/AP
An Iraqi Special Forces soldier exchanges fire with ISIS militants in the Old City on Friday, June 30.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Felipe Dana/AP
A bomb explodes near the al-Nuri mosque complex on Thursday, June 29. Iraq's military has seized the remains of the Great Mosque of al-Nuri. Iraq and the United States have accused ISIS of blowing up the historic mosque.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images
Members of the Iraqi Federal Police hold a position as US-led coalition forces advance through the Old City on Wednesday, June 28.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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MOHAMED EL-SHAHED/AFP/Getty Images
The remnants of Mosul's ancient leaning minaret are seen in the Old City on Sunday, June 25. ISIS' claim that US warplanes were responsible for the destruction of the minaret is "1,000% false," US officials told CNN.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Felipe Dana/AP
Two boys comfort each other after their home collapsed during fighting between Iraqi forces and militants in Mosul on Saturday, June 24. The boys, who are cousins, said some of their relatives were still under the rubble.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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KARIM SAHIB/AFP/Getty Images
An Iraqi soldier helps transport a girl as residents flee their homes west of Mosul on Friday, May 26.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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FADEL SENNA/AFP/Getty Images
Displaced Iraqis make their way through rubble after evacuating their homes in a neighborhood of west Mosul on Wednesday, May 17.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images
An Iraqi man tries to extinguish a burning car during fighting in Mosul's western Rifai neighborhood on Tuesday, May 16.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images
A member of the Iraqi counterterrorism service secures a building as troops push toward Mosul's Al-Oraibi western district on Sunday, May 14.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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FADEL SENNA/AFP/Getty Images
A smoke cloud rises on the front line as the Iraqi Emergency Response Division advances in west Mosul on Saturday, May 6.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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CHRISTOPHE SIMON/AFP/Getty Images
A wounded man is transported in western Mosul on Friday, April 21.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Carl Court/Getty Images
An Iraqi federal policeman smokes during a break from battle on Wednesday, April 12.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP/Getty Images
A member of Iraq's security forces stands guard in eastern Mosul as smoke rises from the ISIS-controlled western section of the city on Friday, April 7.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP/Getty Images
Iraqis visit a bath house on the southern outskirts of Mosul on Wednesday, April 5.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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ARIS MESSINIS/AFP/Getty Images
Flames billow from an explosion in Mosul during a clash between Iraqi forces and ISIS fighters on Sunday, March 5.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Martyn Aim/Getty Images
Families are forced to evacuate as Iraqi forces advance in western Mosul on Thursday, March 2. The number of internally displaced people has surged as the offensive effort has intensified.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP/Getty Images
Mosul residents cross a damaged bridge in the al-Sukkar neighborhood on Saturday, January 21.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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CHRISTOPHE ENA/AFP/Getty Images
French President Francois Hollande and French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, right, view territory held by ISIS during a visit to a military outpost near Mosul on Monday, January 2.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Chris McGrath/Getty Images
A young girl takes part in a Christmas Day Mass at a church in the predominantly Christian town of Qaraqosh. The area's churches were heavily damaged by ISIS militants before the town was freed by Iraqi forces during the Mosul offensive.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images
Iraqi Shiite fighters ride through a desert area near the village of Al-Boutha al-Sharqiyah, west of Mosul, on Friday, December 2.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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THOMAS COEX/AFP/Getty Images
Internally displaced Iraqis who fled the fighting in Mosul watch as a civilian drone films them at the al-Khazir camp on Thursday, December 1.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Manu Brabo/AP
An Iraqi soldier searches a home for ISIS militants after Iraqi forces retook the village of Al-Qasr on Wednesday, November 30.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Hussein Malla/AP
Iraqi soldiers transport a comrade who was injured during a battle near the village of Haj Ali on Tuesday, November 29.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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HAIDAR MOHAMMED ALI/AFP/Getty Images
A man mourns during the funeral of four Iraqi paramilitary fighters who were killed in battles in the town of Tal Afar.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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THOMAS COEX/AFP/Getty Images
Displaced civilians return to the village of Tall Abtah on Friday, November 25, after Iraqi forces retook the village from ISIS.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Hussein Malla/AP
Iraqi civilians sit on the ground in Mosul on November 24. An Iraqi officer addressed the group, demanding to know the whereabouts of alleged ISIS militants who opened fire on troops a few days earlier.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Felipe Dana/AP
An injured baby receives treatment at a field hospital in Mosul on November 15.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Hussein Malla/AP
A woman cries Sunday, November 13, after seeing the St. Addai church that was damaged by ISIS fighters during their occupation of the Keramlis village.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty Images
An Iraqi special forces soldier prays next to a Humvee before troops pushed toward Mosul's Karkukli neighborhood on November 13.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Adam Schreck/AP
A Kurdish Peshmerga fighter holds part of a defused bomb planted by ISIS militants in Bashiqa, Iraq, on Friday, November 11.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty Images
A member of Iraq's special forces guards two suspected ISIS fighters found hiding in a house in Mosul on November 11.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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ODD ANDERSEN/AFP/Getty Images
An Iraqi woman displaced by war holds her cat near a checkpoint in the Iraqi village of Shaqouli, east of Mosul, on November 10.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images
Iraqi troops watch a broadcast of Donald Trump's acceptance speech in a house in Arbid, on the outskirts of Mosul, on Wednesday, November 9. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi congratulated Trump on his win and said he hoped for continued support in the war on ISIS.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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Marko Drobnjakovic/AP
US Marines install equipment at a coalition base in Qayyara on November 9.
Photos: Mosul: Iraqi-led forces push into key city
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AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images
An Iraqi forces member investigates a mass grave that was discovered after coalition forces recaptured the area of Hamam al-Alil on Monday, Novembe
