David Gilbert, VICE News: Advancing: Iraqi forces recapture ISIS-held airport and military base in western Mosul
Iraqi forces made significant gains Friday in their mission to retake Mosul, taking back total control of the city’s airport as well as the Ghazlani military camp. Having already captured the eastern part of the city, Iraqi forces are now focusing their efforts on retaking the west, where entrenched Islamic State fighters remain well-armed. The terrorist organization is trying to hold onto its last major urban stronghold in Iraq.
Iraqi forces, backed by coalition forces and U.S. air support, pushed into Mosul’s western Mamun neighborhood on Friday, where they were immediately met with intense gunfire from IS militants. One captain in Iraq’s emergency response division told the BBC inside western Mosul: “We very close to liberating Mosul.”
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Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- February 24, 2017
What To Look For in Trump’s 30-Day ISIS Review -- Paul D. Shinkman, US News and World Report
Battered Mongolia faces make-or-break moment -- Ken Koyanagi, Nikkei Asian Review
South Korea's Dangerous Leadership Vacuum -- Benjamin Lee, The Diplomat
North Korea's use of nerve agent in murder sends a deliberate signal to foes -- Julian Borger, The Guardian
China's North Korea Problem -- Hannah Beech, New Yorker
China Moves to Put North Korea in Its Place -- Rodger Baker, Stratfor
Analyst: North Korea coal trade with China operated on 'kickbacks' -- Elizabeth Shim, UPI
As US-China tussle, Asean frets -- Richard Javad Heydarian, Asia Times
Fears of Trump giving China free rein in East Asia misplaced -- Doug Tsuruoka, Asia Times
The Philippines Criticizes China -- Jacob L. Shapiro, Geopoltiical Futures
If Zuma isn’t ousted South Africa faces ruin -- Jenni Russel, The Times/The Australian
Exclusive: How money flowed to Gambia's ex president -- Edward McAllister and Emma Farge, Reuters
As famine threatens, an unprecedented global challenge – and response -- Peter Ford, CSM
A German Clash over Trump's NATO Demands -- Konstantin von Hammerstein, Spiegel Online
It might be time to create an international terrorism court -- Ignacio De La Rasilla Del Moral, The Conversation
What on Earth Is Going On With the Stock Market? -- Derek Thompson, The Atlantic
