Bridgeport, Conn., Oct 24, 2016 / 15:04 pm
The battle to free Mosul from the hands of ISIS must be accompanied by concrete efforts to support the groups that have been targeted by the extremist group, said Carl Anderson, Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus.
"While welcoming the ongoing liberation of the Nineveh plain and Mosul, we must not forget that the genocide begun by ISIS will continue through attrition and neglect unless the United States and international community prioritizes those groups that were targeted for extermination and risk disappearing altogether," Anderson said in an Oct. 21 statement.
On Oct. 17, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced a ground offensive to retake Mosul, which has been under the control of the Islamic State since June 2014.
In addition to the Kurdish Peshmerga forces, U.S. troops, British and French Special Forces, and a number of Turkish soldiers are supporting the Iraqi army in the battle, which was initially expected to take between several weeks to several months to complete.