Iraq launches operation to clear IS remnants from Kanous

The Popular Mobilization Forces in Iraq carried out a military operation Wednesday to clear the islands in the Kanous area from the remnants of the Islamic State group.

The Kanous islands are a group of small islands in the Tigris River situated near Kanous village in southern Mosul.

The area is used by IS militants as a distribution center for the militants that are coming from Syria.

The military operations in the area started on Sept. 19 by the Iraqi army, police forces, and PMF.

But after three days, the Iraqi army and police forces pulled out from the area without achieving their goal of clearing the islands of IS pockets.

The Iraqi Joint Operations Center has published several photos of murdered IS members, their guns and hideouts but did not specify the reason behind the withdrawal or announce the end of the operations.

Only the PMF are continuing the operations and attempting to clear the IS hideouts on the islands, which are densely packed with trees.

The PMF are facing challenges and do not have the engineering equipment or pontoon bridges needed to cross the river, said Abu Sidra al Turkmani, the head of operations at Brigade 30.

The PMF was created in 2014 as a framework to organize and pay the thousands who volunteered to fight the IS after a fatwa by Iraq's top cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.