The Liberation of Mosul: A Hard Fought Freedom
Photographer: Gabriel Romero
Exhibit Title: The Liberation of Mosul: A Hard Fought Freedom
Location: Iraq
The Iraqi Army declared victory in Mosul on July 9, 2017. This ended the nine month effort to liberate the city from ISIS control. In the end, the city was nearly destroyed, resulting in a massive humanitarian crisis that the people of Iraq will undoubtedly spend years recovering from. Despite overwhelming numbers, the Iraqi Army suffered dearly, losing nearly 2,000 men. Exact figures may never be known. The exact number of ISIS dead is in dispute. Most agree the number hovered over 10,000. In addition, the exact number of civilian casualties may never be known. The symbolic victory in Mosul occured in June of 2017, when Iraqi forces captured the site of the Grand Mosque of al-Nuri, where three years earlier ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi had declared the creation of the Caliphate known as the Islamic State.
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