THE United States of America envoy to the multinational coalition fighting the Islamic state jihadist in Iraq city of Mosul had said that any militants left in the city will die there.
According to the envoy,Brett McGurk,he said coalition and Iraqi goverment forces were "committed to not just defeating them in Mosul but making sure these guys cannot escape".
This warning came after the Iraqi army's ninth division cut off the last road out of the west of the city.
Mosul is the last major urban IS stronghold in Iraq,but Iraqi forces backed by coalition air strikes and military advices on the ground have managed to retake large areas in the past five months.
Government forces currently controls all Mosul's eastern side and have driven IS fighters from several western districts since mid-February.