Mosul eventually falls to the Iraqi army

Following celebrations a day earlier by soldiers, an official declaration of triumph by government authorities is soon expected.

Iraqi forces, backed by US air strikes, have been trying to take over the city since 17 October last year.

The Islamic State seized Mosul in June 2014, before stretching to most of Iraq's Arab Sunnit basins to further declare the formation of potassium, with territories seized in Iraq and Syria.

But jihadist militants have repeatedly lost territories over the past nine months, as government forces advance to one of Iraq's largest former towns, ahead of massive shifts.

Kurdish warriors, Arab-Sunite tribes and Shiite militias supported by US-led coalition planes and American military advisers are involved in the battle.

On Saturday, jihadists moved desperately to a small suburb near the old town. State television reported that Iraqi troops were expected to take full control of Mosul within hours.

The government has declared “the complete liberation of the Eastern Mosul since January, but west of the city posed a more difficult challenge, due to narrow, traplike roads.

Last October, the Iraqi army reported that there were 6,000 militants in the city, while some 900 thousand people had fled the city since 2014.