Terrorists with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria in the western part of Mosul face two options: surrender or die, said the spokesman for the Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve.
In a news briefing from Baghdad, Air Force Colonel John Dorrian said, "The enemy is completely surrounded in West Mosul, and those who do not surrender to the Iraqi security forces will be killed there."
As Iraqi security forces prepare to liberate West Mosul, coalition strikes are pounding ISIS targets, including terrorists and their weapons caches and ISIS command-and-control sites, Dorrian said.
With eastern Mosul liberated, the 16th Iraqi Army Division is maintaining pressure on any remaining ISIS sleeper cells to prevent the terrorists from infiltrating the city again.
Terrorists are targeting eastern Mosul with indirect fire, mortars and artillery fires, causing damage and civilian casualties. They are also using commercially available drones to observe and drop explosives on Iraqi security force and civilian positions.
As Syrian Democratic Forces and their partners work on the isolation of the key Syrian city of Raqqa, coalition strikes continue to take out ISIS targets, Dorrian said. Recent targets include tunnels, weapons caches, command-and-control nodes and vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices.
The Syrian Democratic Forces with their Syrian Arab Coalition partners have liberated nearly 3,400 square kilometers of territory since the operation to isolate Raqqa began November 5, Dorrian said.
In the Syrian city of al-Bab, since January 1, the coalition has conducted 35 strikes, delivering 101 weapons in or near the city to kill ISIS fighters and to destroy equipment, artillery, fighting positions, tunnels and command-and-control nodes.
Coalition and Turkish military leaders continue coordinating operations around al-Bab. "The enemy, in Al Bab," said Spokesman Dorrian, "is in deep trouble, with Turkish military and partner forces converging on the city from the northwest, coalition forces pounding the enemy from the air, and regime forces approaching from the south."
Meanwhile, the coalition continues to fight ISIS on multiple fronts. "Our commitment to completely destroying ISI[S]," said Colonel Dorrian, "means that we must destroy their ability to communicate with leadership, their financial network and their ability to control terrain."
