| US forces expect to clear Al Qaeda militants from the northern city of Mosul within months, said a senior US army officer on Monday. But success against Al Qaeda in Mosul is posing a new challenge for US forces, as military operations drive militants from the city to remote areas beyond reach of US and Iraqi intelligence and surveillance. “The real challenge now is to find where they are with any sort of centre of gravity,” said Army Brig Gen Tony Thomas, second in command of multinational forces in northern Iraq. Coalition and Iraqi security forces have established joint-security sites and combat posts in the heart of Mosul as “the first critical step” toward lasting security. |