Battle for Mosul Won't Be An Easy Victory
- Trapped civilians mean quick victory is unlikely, analyst says
- International community must support Iraq recovery after fight
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Iraqi forces, backed by Kurdish fighters, are fighting to retake Mosul from Islamic State and effectively end jihadist control over territory in OPEC’s second-biggest producer. It was from Mosul that the group declared its self-styled caliphate in 2014, so defeat there would be a symbolic as well as strategic blow to the movement. Here analysts answer key questions.
“It’s a question of months, not weeks, and it depends on how ISIS chooses to pursue this,” Firas Abi Ali, principal analyst at IHS Country Risk, said in a phone interview from Dubai using an acronym for the group. The presence of large number of civilians makes it hard to conduct a quick operation using overwhelming force, he said.