do show a fairly sophisticated anti-tank missile system. this is going to be quite concerning to iraqi forces as they move towards the city of mow stul self. not only will isis have the capability to use these type of weapon systems, they have also been using car bombs, truck bombs that they ve rigged with armor to try to prevent iraqi forces from stopping them in their tracks. this is armor that can deflect a rocket propelled grenade, for example. there s also been growing concern for a civilian population. already reports of around 75 people executed after firefights broke out inside mosul. we have over the course of the last week to ten days hundreds of people being executed because they tried to stand up to isis. isis is stringing together 20
fighters on the move now. let s hear from michael holmes. tell us what s happening, michael. reporter: yeah, christine, obviously isis plans to defend mosul. it s been a long time in the making. it seems they re going into effect. witnesses inside mosul are telling us that hundreds of fighters have been pouring into the city from raqqah in syria, the de facto headquarters of isis. hundreds of men coming in wearing distinctive uniforms and wearing suicide belts. they have light weapons. these are obviously suicide squads who are being brought into the city. the locals tell us that these are mainly foreign fighters who are determined to fight to the death. they re going to have the tools to do it. we re hearing isis has prepositioned dozens of explosive devices, car bombs or some of these big truck bombs that they have as well, position those around the outskirts of
yesterday. we have been hearing small arms fire now and mortars going in with artillery. they cut this place off from the main road to mosul. all part of the encircling of mosul so when all forces are up there and coordinated and close, then they can start going in. you mentioned the pace of the advance with the iraqi and kurds. all say this is ahead of schedule. there are perils to that. we just got new numbers from the iraqi joint operations center. 78 towns and villages have been liberated during this offensive. 700 isis fighters. 770 actually have been killed. incredible. 130 car and truck bombs have been destroyed during the operation as well. one of isis most feared weapons. they are leaving booby traps and ieds as they leave the villages.
about seven or eight miles. that s the peshmerga in the north. making progress, too, from the south, the southeast. but not so much from the west. we re just outside bashiqa where they mounted an operation yesterday and came in on two fronts and surrounded this very strategically important area. the town and eight different villages. 100 square kilometers and it was interesting we could hear small arms fire and rockets going in and then it was quiet. now, what we ve been told is that they have been encountering those suicide car and truck bombs that have been such a problem. 130 of them have been destroyed during this campaign so far. they re also up against snipers. all have been quiet for a few hours and in the last hour or so a lot of mortars and a lot of rockets and also aircraft in the air over bashiqa. targets are being acquired and taken out so the peshmerga can
[ speaking arabic ] arwa is joining us from a much safer location not too far away from mosul in erbil, iraq. so arwa, what s the latest on the battlefield. as you saw in that clip there, we were taking cover behind the humvees as best we could as the counterterrorism special forces were pushing forward towards what was a christian enclave, a small town, they advanced from three different directions coming across what are now fairly common isis tactics, truck bombs, suicide car bombs, as well as mortar fire. responding in full force. they did according to the brigade s commanding general manage to recapture the vast majority of the town itself although they said they were