Iraqi military begins operation to retake Fallujah from ISIS

On Sunday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced the military has started its assault against the Islamic State in Fallujah.

Earlier, the government warned residents to leave town, or put a white flag outside their home if they were unable to escape. "The moment of real victory has come," Abadi said on state TV, and ISIS "has no option but to flee." Fallujah's exiled mayor told The Wall Street Journal that ISIS fighters have been retreating from the outskirts of the city to its center. It took months to plan the operation, and if successful, Mosul will be ISIS's final stronghold in Iraq.

Residents inside Fallujah, which ISIS took over in December 2013, say people are dying of starvation, and there are shortages of medicine. The Iraqi army, counterterrorism forces, police, tribal fighters, and Shiite militias are all participating in the assault.

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