The Battle For The Iraqi City Of Mosul -- News Updates June 1, 2017

The Independent: The scene is set for Isis’s last stand in Mosul

Remaining militants hole up in symbolic fight for city’s Grand Mosque, from which leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared the establishment of the so-called caliphate in 2014

Iraqis trapped inside the last tiny Isis-controlled pocket of Mosul have reported that militants have been shoring up defences outside the city’s Grand al-Nuri mosque, a symbolic move ahead of their final showdown with coalition forces.

In the last two days all roads leading to the beautiful medieval building on the west bank of the Tigris River have been sealed off, and families ordered behind the front lines to serve as human shields against approaching Iraqi troops, residents inside the city have said.

Isis swept across more than a third of Iraq from neighbouring Syria in a series of surprise attacks in the summer of 2014; its position as a powerful player in the region was assured when its fighters stormed Mosul, Iraq’s rich, cosmopolitan second city.

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The Battle For The Iraqi City Of Mosul -- News Updates June 1, 2017

In Iraq, IS Seals off Area Around Symbolic Mosque in Mosul -- AP
ISIL fighters seal off Mosul mosque for last stand -- Al Jazeera
IS Barricades Symbolic Mosque for Last Stand in Mosul -- VOA
Islamic State fortifies al-Nuri Mosque for their last stand in Mosul -- News.com.au
Police commandos besiege IS in old Mosul’s Zanjili, kill 12 militants -- Iraqi News
The Final Push for Mosul: 'Matter of Time' Until ISIS Flag Falls in Iraq's Second City -- Newsweek
Ex-Islamic State fighters face justice in Mosul -- Al-Monitor
Police chief: Islamic State lost 80% of suicide attackers, commandos in Mosul -- Iraqi News
Dozens of Fleeing Civilians Killed, Wounded by Islamic State Mortar Fire in Mosul -- Reuters
Mosul battle: At least 142 civilians killed in six days -- Al Jazeera
Coalition: Islamic State controlling less than 10 sq kilometers in Mosul -- Iraqi News
Hundreds of thousands in western Mosul ‘static’ after forces target vehicles -- RUDAW
UN: 200,000 Iraqis Could Flee Mosul in Coming Days -- VOA
Nearly 800,000 civilians flee homes in Mosul, UN says -- Daily Sabah
Iraq: Almost one million people displaced from Mosul -- Al Jazeera
Burqa ban in Mosul: Iraqi army stops women covering their heads as ISIS militants use the garments while launching suicide bombings -- Daily Mail
Iraqi army imposes Ramadan ‘burqa ban’ in Mosul fearing Isis will use it for attacks -- The Independent
Brave Iraqi soldier runs into ISIS line of fire to rescue exhausted elderly woman after she falls down while trying to flee fighting in Mosul -- Daily Mail
As fighting rages in Mosul's Old City, American doctors help the wounded -- CBS