ISIL terrorist group has stepped up suicide attacks as it seeks to hold off Iraqi forces in the final stages of the battle for Mosul, a senior commander said Monday.

“The enemy has been using suicide bombers, especially women, for the past three days in some of the neighborhoods,” said Staff Lieutenant General Sami al-Aridhi, a senior commander in the elite Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS).

“Before that, they were using snipers and bombs more,” he said.

“There are still at least 200 fighters from the (ISIL) organization” in Mosul, most of them foreigners, he said.

Source: AFP