French President Francois Hollande on Tuesday urged the US-led coalition backing the offensive against terrorists of the so-called ‘Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant’ (ISIL) takfiri groups in Mosul to prepare for the aftermath of the city’s fall, including returning gunmen. “The recapture is not an end in itself. ...
French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian warned Tuesday that the battle to retake the Iraqi city of Mosul from ISIL group could take “months”. “It could be a long battle, it’s not a blitzkrieg… It’s a lengthy affair (lasting) several weeks, maybe months,” he told reporters in Paris a day ...