Iraqi forces made major gains in the six months since launching the operation to retake Mosul, but the battle for Iraq's second city and the war against the Islamic State group are far from over. Tough close-quarters fighting in heavily-populated areas of Mosul is still ahead, and IS also holds territory in other parts of Iraq, as well as in neighbouring Syria. The jihadists will still be able to carry out attacks in Iraq even if they no longer control significant territory, while the impact of the war -- widespread displacement of civilians, cities and towns devastated by the fighting, countless lives disrupted -- will last long after the fighting ends.



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