The bodies of civilians and security forces were found in an abandoned base near Hawija, a northern town retaken in early October, the Kirkuk governor, Rakan Saed, said on Sunday. Iraqi forces have driven Isis from nearly all the territory it once controlled. US-backed Iraqi forces have driven the extremists from nearly all the territory they once controlled, with some fighting still under way near the western border with Syria. Hours later, the Iraqi defence ministry announced capturing the Romana area, saying the troops would head to the nearby town of Rawa. According to Ahmed al-Asadi, a spokesman for the Shia-majority paramilitary forces, Rawa is the last Iraqi town held by Isis, which still controls some scattered small villages in mainly desert areas.

Source: The Guardian November 12, 2017 17:37 UTC