Mosul

Musicians have historically used their art to advocate for peace amidst conflict. Ali Ghamsari performed at a Tehran power plant in 2026, highlighting civilian risks during escalating US-Iran tensions. His music aimed to symbolize resistance against attacks on critical infrastructure, echoing Vedran Smailović's performances during the Siege of Sarajevo.

The Middle East's conflicts are analyzed through the lens of 'proxies and levers,' where state actors use non-state groups to project power and achieve strategic goals. This approach, while avoiding direct military costs, often results in prolonged violence, instability, and humanitarian crises, complicating peace efforts in the region.

Islamic State chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has been trapped by Iraqi Army, which entered the terrorist group's stronghold of Mosul for the first time in more than two years for a final assault, a report has claimed.

The US and Iraqi forces plan to launch military operation to regain control of Iraq's second largest city of Mosul from the Islamic State, the terror group that has seized hundreds of square miles in Iraq and Syria.

MIDEAST-CRISIS/IRAQ-Mosul (WRAPUP 1, TV, PIX):WRAPUP 1-Iraqi forces fighting Islamic State set to storm airport, clear way to western Mosul

Union foreign minister Sushma Swaraj on Sunday met family members of the 39 construction workers abducted from Mosul in 2014 and expressed hope that they would be released soon as India had received information that they were probably lodged in a jail near Mosul.

Foreign ministry spokesman Gopal Baglay said as soon as the announcement of Mosul's liberation was made by the Iraqi Prime Minister, the government activated various channels for locating the missing Indians.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani on Sunday ordered for the inauguration of the airport in second city Mosul to be held in June, marking 11 years since jihadists took over the city. In August 2022, then-prime minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi laid the foundation stone for the airport's reconstruction.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said all Indians stand in solidarity with the families of the 39 Indians killed in Mosul in Iraq and the government is "fully committed" to ensure the safety of Indians abroad.

An Iraqi cameraman was killed on Saturday covering a military offensive to wrest the city of Mosul back from the Islamic State group. The reporter was killed "covering the battle" near the village of Al-Shura, south of Mosul, Al Sumaria TV said.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani inaugurated Wednesday the city of Mosul's newly restored airport, years after it was destroyed in the battle to dislodge the Islamic State group. After years of fierce battles, Iraqi forces backed by a US-led international coalition dislodged the group from the city in July 2017, before declaring its defeat across the country at the end of that year.

Life in Mosul, the second biggest city of Iraq now overrun by ISIL (Islamic State In Iraq and the Levant) militia, was never peaceful.

Iraqi forces began storming the Islamic State-held Old City of Mosul on Sunday, an assault they hope to be the last in the nine-month old campaign to seize the terrorists' stronghold.

Two top IS commanders have been killed in a US airstrike in the Iraqi city of Mosul, the Pentagon has announced and hoped that this would help in liberating Mosul from the control of the dreaded terror group.

ISIS began selecting women of Mosul and forced them into marrying its militants, calling it temporary marriage since it has taken control over Mosul, and the women who refused to submit to this practice would be executed, said Kurdish Democratic Party spokesman.

Sushma Swaraj briefed family members of the abducted men, who are mostly from Punjab, about information gathered by the Minister of State for External Affairs, VK Singh, who was sent to the Gulf nation after its Prime Minister announced the liberation of Mosul from the dreaded terror group ISIS.

Around 40 Indians working on projects near the Iraqi city of Mosul were kidnapped by suspected ISIS militants when they were being evacuated from the area.

Iraq on Sunday declared victory against the IS group in Mosul after a month-long campaign. MEA termed the liberation of Mosul from ISIS as an important milestone in global war on terror and said India welcomes it. The MEA added that VK Singh will travel to Erbil in Iraq in this regard.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Eshaiker al-Jafari on Monday said his government has no substantial evidence whether the 39 Indians who went missing in Mosul three years ago have been killed or are still alive. Al-Jaafari began his five-day visit to India today.

ISIS has reportedly beheaded over 20 of its fighters in full public view for trying to flee a war zone in Iraq's Mosul city, sending out a chilling warning to others in the terror group against desertion.

Islamic State terror group may have developed a nuclear device by using radioactive uranium stolen from Iraq's Mosul University after seizing control of the city last June, a British media report says.

IS militants who lost a key town to Iraqi forces were burned alive in full public view by their own men after they fled to the group’s stronghold of Mosul, in a terrifying message to other fighters, a media report has said.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will hold extensive talks with her Iraqi counterpart Ibrahim al-Jaafari on Monday during which focus is expected to be on the issue of 39 Indians kidnapped by the ISIS three years back from Mosul city.

The UN has warned that Iraq's very existence is under threat.

Twenty-seven Punjabis among 39 Indians abducted by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) are said to be working in a textile factory in Mosul.

The most dramatic escalation came on February 28, when the United States and Israel launched coordinated strikes across Iran targeting military installations and senior leadership. One strike hit a compound in Tehran housing the offices of the ayatollah, the Iranian presidency and the national security apparatus. The attack killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, sending shockwaves across the region.