Mosul

ISIS militants have executed 250 women for refusing to engage in ‘sexual jihad’ with their fighters since Iraq’s largest city Mosul fell into their hands in early June 2014. Under the pretext of Shariah law women are forced to submit to sexual slavery through temporary marriage otherwise they could face harsh penalties for refusing. Abna24 reports: A Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) official from Mosul, Said Mamuzini, said that life is too hard for the women in Mosul due to the ISIS strict rules imposed on them.

Believe it or not, the Iraqi army is on the verge of launching an attack on ISIS-held Mosul.

The city - home to millions of Iraqis - is Bakr al-Baghdadi's most important urban stronghold.

Raqqa is the ISIS "capital", but it's easier to command. Mosul is a major city with a population that numbers in the millions. If ISIS were to lose its grip there, it would almost surely mark the beginning of the end for the self-styled "caliphate."  

A top Kurdish commander says that the impending battle to liberate Mosul in northern Iraq from Islamic State forces could turn into a bloodbath. Polad Jangi Talabani says that sectarian disputes between Iraqi Arab Muslims needs to be settled somewhat before considering attacking Mosul that has been under Islamic State control since 10th June 2014. ISIL militants easily took over major parts of Iraq mainly due to the tension that exists between Sunnis and Shiites since the removal of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.

ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi  reportedly ordered the arrest of some his top lieutenants near Mosul, on charges of treason. Iraqi News reports: Nineveh – Media officials with the Ministry of Defense announced on Wednesday, that the so-called ‘masked terrorist’ arrested dozens of prominent ISIS leaders on charges of treason, while pointed out that the arrest operations were carried out by orders of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

A 16-year-old Swedish teenager was rescued from the hands of ISIS terrorists by Iraqi Kurdish forces near the city of Mosul. ALALAM reports: According to a Tuesday statement by the government in Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, the anti-terrorist forces carried out the operation on February 17 near Mosul, located about 360 kilometers (225 miles) northwest of the capital, Baghdad. The 16-year-old girl from the Swedish town of Boras “was misled” by a member of Daesh in Sweden to travel to Syria and later to Mosul, the statement said.