Updated: Taking over nearby villages, Al-Hashed al-Shaabi claims recapture of Tal Afar airport
Tal Afar military airport.
The militia said in a statement that it liberated the village of Tal al-Romh, 2 kilometers from the airport, from Islamic State militants, putting the airport within their “firing range”. It also captured the village of Tal al-Souban, east of the airport.
“al-Hashed al-Shaabi’s intelligence had detected calls by ISIS to their fighters to withdraw from Tal al-Romh to Tal Khedr Elias,” the militia’s media body said.
On Tuesday, al-Hashed al-Shaabi media body said the forces had liberated four villages on the western axis of Mosul, becoming 18 kilometers away from the airport of the strategic town of Tal Afar.
“Should al-Hashed forces take control of Tal Afar airport, that would be a prelude to the liberation of the whole town and the obstruction of a main ISIS supply line to Mosul,” read the statement.
The imminent advance to Tal Afar has been contentious over the past weeks, with Turkey voicing fears of human rights violations by the mostly-Shia al-Hashed al-Shaabi against the Sunni Turkmen residents of the town.