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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Kurdish forces 'retake Mosul dam' from IS militants | Kurdish forces 'retake Mosul dam' from IS militants |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Kurdish forces in northern Iraq are in near complete control of Iraq's largest dam after ousting Islamic State (IS) militants, Kurdish officials say. | |
| Kurdish ground forces supported by US air strikes launched the operation to take Mosul dam on Sunday morning. | Kurdish ground forces supported by US air strikes launched the operation to take Mosul dam on Sunday morning. |
| Kurdish sources said they were still trying to clear mines and booby traps from the area round the dam, a process which could take several hours. | |
| The strategically important facility was seized by IS militants on 7 August. | |
| It supplies water and electricity to northern Iraq and there had been fears the IS militants could use it to flood areas downstream. | |
| IS, formerly known as Isis, has seized a swathe of territory in recent months in Iraq and Syria. | |
| Special forces | |
| The US said it destroyed or damaged 19 vehicles belonging to IS militants as well as a checkpoint in strikes round the dam on Sunday. | The US said it destroyed or damaged 19 vehicles belonging to IS militants as well as a checkpoint in strikes round the dam on Sunday. |
| Hoshyar Zebari, a Kurd who until last month was Iraq's foreign minister, told the BBC that Peshmerga troops encountered "fierce resistance" in the battle for the dam. | Hoshyar Zebari, a Kurd who until last month was Iraq's foreign minister, told the BBC that Peshmerga troops encountered "fierce resistance" in the battle for the dam. |
| He said the next objective was to clear IS fighters from the Nineveh plain "to ensure the return of minorities". | He said the next objective was to clear IS fighters from the Nineveh plain "to ensure the return of minorities". |
| Thousands of Christians and Yazidis have fled their homes there in the face of the IS advance. | Thousands of Christians and Yazidis have fled their homes there in the face of the IS advance. |
| US special forces were on the ground helping to co-ordinate air strikes, Kurdish officials said. |