MOSUL, Iraq – “Once we cross this bridge, anything can happen” our fixer, Ayar, warns as we rumble over the Tigris and officially cross into western Mosul.
The eastern half of the city has been liberated for months, and some semblance of normal life has returned to the city. Most of west Mosul has been liberated as well, save for the Old City: its ancient buildings, narrow streets and endless blind alleys have made clearing the last ISIS fighters a slow, brutal process.
We start our trip into west Mosul with a long stay at the checkpoint Scorpion. Mosul is filled with checkpoints like this, where Iraqi soldiers and police search vehicles heading to and from the disputed areas. Some of these people are fleeing the city for Internally Displaced Person camps, and some of them are returning to their homes in newly-liberated portions of the city.
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Source: KTNV