Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, speaking at the Qayyara military air base south of the city of Mosul, said that the Iraqi forces were trying to close off all escape routes for the thousands of Islamic State fighters inside the embattled city, while stressing that the Islamic State militants will either die or surrender.
“We are trying to close off all escape for Daesh and God willing, we will chop off the snake’s head. I tell all the people of Nineveh and the people of Mosul in particular that those heroes (members of the Iraqi forces) will chop off Daesh’s head. We will enclose them. They will have no escape, they either die or surrender,” said the Iraqi leader.
Iraqi security forces and Kurdish Peshmerga fighters started an offensive on the 17th of October to drive out the extreme Muslim group from Mosul, with air and ground support from a US-led coalition. The Iraqi Prime Minister also threatened Ankara, which demanded Turkish involvement in the operation to re-capture the city of Mosul, saying Iraq does not want a war with Turkey but if there will be a conflict, “Bagdad is ready and Ankara will pay a heavy price.”