Islamic State fighters retreating in the face of a seven-week Iraqi military assault on their Mosul stronghold have hit back in the last two days, exploiting cloudy skies which hampered US-led air support.
In a series of counter-attacks since Friday night, the jihadist fighters struck elite Iraqi troops spearheading the offensive in eastern Mosul, and attacked security forces to the south and west of the city.
On Sunday two militants tried to attack army barracks in the western province of Anbar. Police and army sources said the attackers were killed before they reached the base.
Iraqi officials say they continue to gain ground against the militants who still hold about three-quarters of the country's largest northern city which is Islamic State's last major urban stronghold in Iraq.
One military source said the militants had taken back some ground, but predicted their gains would be short-lived. "We withdraw to avoid civilian losses and then regain control. They can't hold territory for long," the source said.
But the fierce resistance means the military's campaign is likely to stretch well into next year as it seeks to recapture a city where the jihadists are dug in among civilians and using a network of tunnels to launch waves of attacks.
This has prompted fears among residents and aid groups of a winter food, water and fuel supply crisis for the million residents still in Islamic State-held areas of the city, and calls to speed up operations.
"Daesh (Islamic State) still controls our neighbourhood, and the Iraqi forces have not taken a single step forward in three weeks. We're in despair," said a resident in Mosul's southeastern district of Intisar, where the army's Ninth Armoured Division has struggled to make gains.
"My family and I have been sleeping under the concrete stairs in our house for a month now, afraid of the random bombardment between the Iraqi forces and the Daesh elements," he told Reuters by telephone.
Some 100,000 Iraqi government troops, Kurdish security forces and mainly Shi'ite militiamen are participating in the assault on Mosul that began on October 17.
A spokesman for the Counter Terrorism Services (CTS) who have been leading the Iraqi army advance in Mosul denied any let-up in the overall campaign.
"The operation is continuing on all fronts - there's no halt on any front," spokesman Sabah al-Numani told Iraqi television.
Iraqi commanders say they have killed at least 1000 Islamic State fighters. A government adviser estimated the jihadist group now had about 4000 fighters in Mosul.
The elite CTS units and the armoured division have captured around half of the eastern side of Mosul, which is split down the centre by the Tigris river.
Officers say Islamic State has deployed more than 650 car bombs since the campaign started but say the pace of attacks has fallen off.
The militants have also struck with volleys of mortar bombs and used a network of tunnels to target soldiers.
Commanders hope to stretch Islamic State defences more thinly, by opening new fronts inside the city.
