ISIS leader ‘urges’ Mosul protection

The ISIS group has released an audiotape which it says is from its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, ordering Iraqis to defend the city of Mosul against the Iraqi army.

The recording has not been verified yet but analysts believe it is genuine.

Baghdadi’s whereabouts are unknown. Some officials have said he may be inside Mosul alongside ISIS fighters.

It comes as Iraqi army forces continue their three-front advance on the city, the last ISIS stronghold in the country.

Mosul is where Baghdadi declared a caliphate two years ago.

Iraqi forces have already retaken dozens of villages and towns on the outskirts of the city, with the help of Kurdish Peshmerga forces, Shia Muslim militias and Sunni Arab tribesmen.

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