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Some 800 Militants Head to Syrian Border After Leaving Mosul, Iraq - Russian MoD

© AFP 2023 / MARWAN IBRAHIMA general view of a district in the city of Mosul. (File)
A general view of a district in the city of Mosul. (File) - Sputnik International
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At least 800 militants have left the Iraqi city of Mosul and headed toward the Syrian border over the past week, chief of the Russian General Staff Main Operational Directorate Col. Gen. Sergei Rudskoy said Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Russian military has repeatedly said that Daesh terrorists leave Mosul for Syria amid an Iraqi offensive supported by the US-led coalition.

"According to our data, at least 800 militants have left Mosul over the past week toward the Syrian border," Rudskoy said at a briefing.

Militants continue infiltrating Deir Ez-Zor in Syria from Iraq despite the US-led coalition's assurances of fully surrounding Mosul, he said.

"Despite coalition assurances on the complete encirclement of Mosul, the infiltration of militants from the city into the Syrian region of Deir Ez-Zor continues."

He said the Deir Ez-Zor "garrison has been fighting for several years while being surrounded."

DAESH signs are pictured in Bad el Beid area during a battle between Iraqi forces and DAESH militants, in the city Mosul, Iraq March 18, 2017. - Sputnik International
Unwise to Leave Mosul to Terrorists Despite Liberation Collateral Damage
Last December, the Russian Defense Ministry said that intelligence data suggested that up to 5,000 Daesh terrorists have been moved to Syria’s Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor from Iraq’s Mosul.

The Iraqi operation to recapture Mosul, the key stronghold of Daesh in Iraq, began in October 2016 and resulted in the liberation of the city’s eastern part in January. Fighting continues in the Mosul's western part.

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