By Stephen Kalin and Maher Chmaytelli SOUTH OF MOSUL/BAGHDAD, Iraq (Reuters) - U.S.-backed Iraqi forces battling Islamic State fighters have fought their way close to Mosul's airport on the second day of a ground offensive on the jihadists' remaining stronghold in the western side of the city, military statements said on Monday. Federal police and elite interior ministry units known as Rapid Response are leading the charge toward the airport on the southern outskirts of Mosul and plan to turn it into a close support base for the push into western Mosul, commanders have said. The militants are essentially under siege in western Mosul, along with an estimated 750,000 civilians, after they were forced out of the eastern part of the city in the first phase of the campaign that ended last month, after 100 days of fighting.



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