US commander denies Iraqi army control of Fallujah

A US military commander in Baghdad has refuted the Iraqi army’s claim that it has liberated the city of Fallujah from Daesh.

Colonel Christopher Garver said: “The Iraqi forces had cleared only a third of the city and the rest remains contested.” Meanwhile, Iraqi military leaders insist that 80 per cent of the city is under their control.

On Friday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi announced that the Iraqi army has recaptured the city of Fallujah from Daesh adding that the remaining pockets of the group’s fighters would be “cleaned out within hours”.

Iraqi forces entered the city centre on Friday, and raised the national flag over the city council, but clashes between government forces and Daesh members continue in the north of Fallujah.

Garver warned that the Iraqi troops would encounter more resistance as they moved out from the centre of the city.

“What it looks like is a [Daesh] defensive belt around the city with not as stiff defences inside. That could be their toughest fighting,” he added.

On Tuesday, Iraqi military leaders said they had expelled Daesh elements from two areas north of the city and added that the battle has claimed the lives of 2,500 fighters but that number could not be confirmed.