Hindustani78
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http://aa.com.tr/en/turkey/turkish-soldier-martyred-in-ied-attack-near-iraq-border/826600
A Turkish soldier was martyred when his unit was hit by an improvised explosive device in a mountainous region close to the Iraqi border early Thursday, a security official said.
Troops from the 2nd Border Brigade Command were attacked in Cukurca, a district of Hakkari province in southeast Turkey, at around 4.00 a.m. local time (0200GMT), the official said on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to the media.
The device -- believed to have been planted by PKK terrorists -- injured two other soldiers who were later treated at Hakkari State Hospital.
The unit was conducting counter-terrorism operations around Avus Tepe.
The PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and EU -- resumed its armed campaign against Turkey in July 2015, since when it has been responsible for the deaths of around 1,200 people, according to official figures.
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http://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/iraqi-army-braces-for-fresh-push-on-daesh-held-w-mosul/826901
Civilians are fleeing western Mosul in the run-up to renewed operations by the Iraqi army to purge the northern city of Daesh terrorists.
Iraqi Army Captain Jabar Hassan told Anadolu Agency on Friday that dozens of local residents had fled Mosul’s Daesh-held Old City after calls by the army urging civilians to “leave the area immediately”.
According to Hassan, a number of “safe exits” have been set up to allow civilians in Daesh-held parts of the city to leave their homes for nearby “safe zones”.
“With a view to decisively purging western Mosul of Daesh, Iraqi forces are now gearing up for a large-scale offensive,” he said.
“According to civilian residents who have already managed to escape, the militants are forcing local families to remain in their homes," Hassan added.
In a Thursday statement broadcast on state television, Rashid Yarullah, a lieutenant-general in the army’s Joint Mosul Operations Command, reiterated calls for the “immediate departure” of civilians from Daesh-held parts of western Mosul.
Once Iraq’s second largest urban center in terms of population, the northern city of Mosul was overrun by Daesh -- along with additional territories in northern and western Iraq -- in mid-2014.
Last October, the Iraqi army launched a wide-ranging operation to eject Daesh from Mosul, eventually capturing the eastern half of the city in January.
The following month, the army launched a fresh offensive aimed at liberating the city’s western half.
*Ali Murat Alhas contributed to this report from Ankara.