Iraqi government forces have attacked Islamic State's remaining redoubt in Mosul's Old City, a day after formally declaring the end of the insurgents' self-declared caliphate and the capture of the historic mosque which symbolised their power.
Dozens of civilians fled in the direction of the Iraqi forces, mostly women and children, some wounded by insurgents fire, thirsty and tired.
The battles ahead will be difficult as most of the militants are foreigners expected to fight until the death. They are dug in among civilians, using them as human shields, Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) commanders in the city told Reuters.
CTS Major General Maan al-Saadi said it could take four to five days of fighting to capture the insurgents' redoubt by the Tigris River, defended by about 200 fighters,
"The advance continues to Midan neighbourhood," he said. "Controlling it means we have reached the Tigris River."
The insurgent position is several hundred metres wide and tens of thousands of civilians are trapped there in harrowing conditions, with little food, water, medicine and no access to health services, according to those who managed to flee.
Those who escaped on Friday streamed through alleyways near the Grand al-Nuri Mosque, which Islamic State fighters blew up a week ago.
Iraqi Prime Minister Hailer al-Abadi declared the end of Islamic States' caliphate - which he called "a state of falsehoood"' - on Thursday after CTS captured the ground of the ruined 850-year-old mosque.
It was from the mosque's pulpit that Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared his caliphate over parts of Syria and Iraq almost three years ago to the day.
The insurgents chose to blow it up rather than see their black flag taken down from its al-Hadba, or Hunchback, minaret where it had been flying since June 2014.
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