Iraqi armed forces launched an operation today to capture the last Daesh-held enclave in Mosul, according to a military statement.
"It was a trap", the officer said.
However, a combination of concentrated attacks by the Iraqi military and the volunteer forces, who rushed to take arms after top Iraqi cleric Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani issued a fatwa calling for fight against the militants, blunted the edge of the Daesh offensive and in recent months led to liberation of much of the territories occupied by Daesh.
Iraqi forces announced the beginning of the final push on the last IS strongholds in Mosul Saturday.
The move came a day after the Iraqi Air Force dropped leaflets telling residents to flee crowded neighborhoods just north of the Old City, where most of the militant forces are clinging on as Iraqi forces encircle the district.
Speaking on condition of anonymity to the Associated Press news agency, two Iraqi military officers described the advance on Mosul's Old City as "cautious" and the clashes on Sunday as "sporadic".
Iraqi forces, backed by heavy USA -led air and artillery strikes, began a new offensive into the Islamic State's final bastions in the city.
Ariana Grande Pens Emotional Open Letter Following Fatal Manchester Attack
More information is emerging about Salman Abedi , the man who murdered 22 people outside an Ariana Grande concert . Very wicked, to target that sort of thing", the 91-year-old monarch told 14-year-old Evie Mills and her parents.
Hundreds of thousands of civilians have fled the northern city since the offensive to reclaim it was launched in October a year ago.
Multiple security forces are attacking "what remains of the unliberated areas" on the west bank of the River Tigris, the Joint Operations Command said in a statement.
Residents in the Old City sounded desperate in telephone interviews made over the past few days.
An average of 10,000 people were reported to flee conflict areas on a daily basis in Western Mosul with 16, 000 fleeing their homes last Thursday, the largest movement of civilians in a single day, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said this week.
"Although the United Nations is not present in the areas where fighting is occurring, we have received very disturbing reports of families being shut inside booby-trapped homes and of children being deliberately targeted by snipers", he said, emphasizing that families in the city still lack access to clean water and medicine and many have only limited access to food.
The probe found that at least 105 civilians had been killed and 36 remained unaccounted for, but said most had been killed by the secondary explosion of IS munitions stored in a nearby house. They were similarly unaware that Is had placed explosives at the site, the report said. The protection for civilians is a legal and moral obligation, 'he said.
Global aid group Save the Children expressed concern that the call for civilians to leave could expose them to additional danger. One of the worst incidents came on March 17, where the Pentagon determined a US airstrike set off secondary explosives laid by IS; the ensuing blast killed more than 100 civilians sheltering in a home in western Mosul.
Donald Trump acknowledges India as 'victim of terrorism' at Riyadh summit
More importantly, President Trump spoke directly of "the crisis of Islamist extremism and the Islamist terror groups it inspires". In short, an American president stood on holy Islamic ground and called on 50 Islamic leaders to fight against Islamic terrorism.
Floyd Mayweather gives Conor McGregor respect, still considering fight
The Mexican holiday has been a date that Floyd really elevated, but it's not a date that Floyd needs to make (the fight) bigger". McGregor has already ironed out the details between himself on the UFC to clear his participation in the fight . " ...
Clinton: Losing to Trump was 'a crushing, devastating blow'
She also addressed graduates in 1992 as first lady and as a student speaker at her own commencement. At the curtain call, actors pointed to her and touched their hearts.
Mourinho: Griezmann? Ask Ed Woodward Mourinho added: "I am really happy with our season, with the trophies, to be back into the Champions League ". United finished 24 points behind champions Chelsea, with a league-high 15 draws.
Joe Biden Tells Cornell Seniors: 'Go Out and Wake Us Up'
Biden revealed that he flew to Germany five years ago to try to convince Murphy to run for office, though he didn't say which office.
LeBron James Breaks Michael Jordan's Playoff Scoring Record WALTHAM, Mass. (AP) - Celtics star Isaiah Thomas says it's too early to tell if he needs surgery on his right hip. There was nearly too much historical context to dissect, and so James did what his instincts told him to do.
Totti is not normal - De Rossi emotional after Roma icon's farewell
During the post-match ceremony, a huge No. 10 jersey with Totti's name on it was unveiled at the center of the pitch. I will fold it nicely, even if I have to admit I'm not ready to say it's over and maybe I never will be.
Celtic keeping their cool ahead of Scottish Cup final The last time these two met in this competition Aberdeen in fact came out on top, winning 2-1 at Celtic Park in the 5th round of the 2013/14 season.
Danish gets first win as White Sox top Tigers 3-0
Leon spent the 2016 season in the Mexican League before signing as minor league free agent last winter. "I was actually sleeping". The third inning was his first 1-2-3 inning getting Cabrera to fly out and striking out Martinez and Upton.
Elvis' Private Jet Set to Be Auctioned After 30 years
Liveauctioneers .com says the jet was owned by Elvis and his father before going to a private owner in New Mexico. It's said that the plane was "One of the first Elvis owned... he spent hundreds of thousands modifying it".
British Airways cancels all flights from Heathrow, Gatwick Last month Germany's Lufthansa and Air France suffered a global system outage which prevented them from boarding passengers. British Airways (BA) has cancelled all flights from Heathrow and Gatwick until 18:00 BST because of computer problems.
Ernie Els penalizes himself after chipping in for eagle at BMW PGA I think that's one thing I've learned in my career is that you're never far away from playing well. "I'm fairly happy. There were three or four bad swings that really cost me any real momentum moving forwards", added Howell.
Music legend Gregg Allman has died, according to his publicist On Saturday, May 27, 2017, a publicist said the musician, the singer for The Allman Brothers Band , has. His love for his family and bandmates was passionate as was the love he had for his extraordinary fans.
Armed police guarding FA Cup final after Manchester bomb Let's hope for a positive result and a chance to celebrate another FA Cup win. "I'm ready to do this". The Arsenal pressure was relentless, but they could not find a second goal .
New French government unveiled, Le Drian foreign minister
Among names being bandied around for the top job in Macron's first government, speculation mostly centered on Edouard Philippe . When Britain leaves the bloc in 2019, France will be the EU's only member with nuclear weapons and a permanent seat on the U.N.