Photos: From the frontlines around Mosul

The Swiss photojournalist Alex Kühni visited different fighting factions around the tightening noose of Iraq's second largest city

SOUTH OF QAYYARAH IRAQ, AUGUST 5: A Daesh car packed with explosives gets hit by a rocket from a coalition fighter plane (photographed through a hole in wall). (Photo: Alex Kühni)

BASHIQA FRONTLINE IRAQ, AUGUST 7: Kurdish Peshmerga discussing the situation in fortified positions overlooking the Daesh held town of Bashiqa. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

BASHIQA FRONTLINE IRAQ, AUGUST 7: Kurdish Peshmerga changing shift at a fighting position overlooking the Daesh held town of Fadhila. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

BASHIQA FRONTLINE IRAQ, AUGUST 7: General Hussein Yazdanpanah, leader of the Iranian based Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) is taking aim with a sniper rifle near Daesh held Bashiqa. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

General Hussein Yazdanpanah, leader of the Iranian based Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) is taking aim with a sniper rifle near Daesh held Bashiqa. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

BASHIQA FRONTLINE IRAQ, AUGUST 7: Female fighters of the Iranian based Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) on the frontline near Daesh held Bashiqa. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

Image of smoke after an airstrike was carried out in Mosul, Iraq [Alex Kühn]

Smoke rises after a bombing attack in Iraq, 10 October 2016 [Alex Kühn/Anadolu Agency]

Image of Kurdish Peshmerga fighters [Alex Kühni]

BASHIQA FRONTLINE IRAQ, AUGUST 8: A Daesh flag near Kurdish frontline positions. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

Fighters of the Iranian based Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) singing during a frontline leave in Mosul, Iraq ([Alex Kühni]

HAWIJA FRONTLINE IRAQ, AUGUST 6: Fighters of the Iranian based Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) maintaining a vehicle mounted heavy machine gun. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

Fighters of the Iranian based Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) maintaining a vehicle mounted heavy machine gun. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

Fighters of the Iranian based Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) on a break. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

KHAZAR FRONTLINE IRAQ, AUGUST 4: An Iraqi soldier in a Daesh dug tunnel under a recently liberated hamlet. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

KHAZAR FRONTLINE IRAQ, AUGUST 4: Iraqi Army colonel Muhammad with his Russian-made sniper rifle. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

TEL ESKOF FRONTLINE IRAQ, AUGUST 3: Members of the Assyrian Christian Nineveh Plain Protection Units (NPU) exercising near the town of Tel Eskof. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

Image of soldiers belonging to the Iraqi Army in Mosul (Photo: Alex Kühni)

SOUTH OF QAYYARAH IRAQ, AUGUST 5: The turret gunner of a Iraqi Army special forces humvee armoured car. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

SOUTH OF QAYYARAH IRAQ, AUGUST 5: View trough the window fo a Iraqi Army armoured car. Visible in the distance the burning oil well, lit by Daesh fighters to limit the vision of coalition fighter planes. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

View trough the window fo a Iraqi Army armoured car. Visible in the distance the burning oil well, lit by Daesh fighters to limit the vision of coalition fighter planes. (Photo: Alex Kühni)

Iraqi Army special forces near Daesh held territory [Alex Kühni]

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