
ISIS thugs have resorted to using human shields as they attempt to defend Mosul as it emerged the terror group's leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is thought to be trapped in the city.

Fanatics have been preventing the city's 1.5 million residents from escaping in recent weeks, according to Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis.

They are being held there 'against their will' and coalition forces 'know they are being used as human shields,' Davis added.

It comes as it was claimed that ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was holed up in the city along with his explosives expert Fawzi Ali Nouimeh.

Senior Kurdish official Hoshiyar Zebari said there were 'solid' intelligence reports saying Baghdadi was in the city. It was in Mosul's Great Mosque of al-Nuri that the terrorist declared the ISIS 'caliphate' in 2014.

The head of Russia's General Staff Valery Gerasimov said today that that any ISIS militant trying to escape Mosul for Syria should be killed on the spot.

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ISIS thugs have resorted to using human shields as they attempt to defend Mosul as it emerged the terror group's leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is thought to be trapped in the city. Aerial pictures show how ISIS fanatics are torching oil in the city

Fanatics have been preventing the city's 1.5 million residents from escaping in recent weeks, according to Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis. Iraqi forces are pictured in the Bajwaniyah village, south of Mosul

Residents are being held there 'against their will' and coalition forces 'know they are being used as human shields,' Davis added

ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is believed to be holed up in the city along with his explosives expert Fawzi Ali Nouimeh

It comes as British jets and drones hit ISIS targets as part of the push to drive the jihadist group out of their Iraqi stronghold.

The RAF took part in strikes around the northern Iraqi city, hitting targets including a truck bomb and anti-tank gun in support of the ground offensive.

The assault on Mosul has led to warnings of a humanitarian crisis as people flee the city, which has been under ISIS control since 2014.

Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon has described the effort to liberate Mosul as a 'big moment' in the war against ISIS and vowed that British forces would continue to play a major role as part of the coalition supporting the Iraqi and Kurdish forces on the ground.

The Ministry of Defence released details of a series strikes carried out by the RAF on Monday and Tuesday.

On Monday, a Reaper drone was in action south-east of the city, attacking targets including a mortar position, an armed truck and two ISIS heavy weapons teams - one equipped with an anti-tank gun.

A Typhoon flight to the south of Mosul used a Paveway IV guided bomb to destroy a large truck bomb before it could be used by IS, with video footage capturing the large explosion on impact.

On Tuesday, a Reaper flying to the south-east of Mosul targeted two groups of ISIS fighters and an armed truck, while to the north-east of the city Typhoons destroyed targets including a string of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) laid out in a defensive belt.

Coalition forces expect ISIS to have laid a series of booby traps in and around Mosul as part of their effort to hamper Iraqi advances.

British jets and drones hit ISIS targets as part of the push to drive the jihadist group out of their Iraqi stronghold. Aerial pictures show a truck bomb south of Mosul

A video grab shows an RAF Typhoon using a Paveway guided bomb to safely dispose of a large truck-bomb, before it could be used by ISIS

The RAF took part in strikes around the northern Iraqi city, hitting targets including a truck bomb and anti-tank gun in support of the ground offensive

Discovery: Peshmerga forces stand around a tunnel used by ISIS militants on the outskirts of Bartila, east of Mosul

Displaced people, who are fleeing from clashes in Al-hud village, south of Mosul, head to Qayyarah, during an operation to attack ISIS

In an indication of the humanitarian consequences of the attack, Save The Children said thousands of desperate Iraqis have made their way to an already-overcrowded Syrian refugee camp in an effort to escape the offensive.

About 5,000 people, mostly women and children, have arrived at the Al Hol camp from the Mosul area in the last 10 days, and at least 1,000 more are now massing at the border waiting to cross, the charity said.

Foreign Office Minister Tobias Ellwood said 'huge amounts of planning' had gone into preparing for the liberation of Mosul.

'The place will be covered in booby traps, in IEDs, it will not be safe for anybody to enter, there will be huge sums of refugees seeking shelter and support elsewhere,' he told BBC Radio 4's World At One.

The city would be liberated by Iraqi Sunni forces and made safe, allowing refugees to return, he insisted.

Last night, ISIS radicals started setting fire to oil wells as they carried out scorched earth tactics in Mosul - with striking similarities to Saddam Hussein's defeated troops 25 years ago.

The jihadis have begun sending huge plumes of black smoke into the air above the key territory, as the battle to defeat the terror group enters a third day.

But images showing smoke flying in the sky have already been compared to the tactics used in the 1991 Gulf War, when Saddam took his troops out of Kuwait with defeat in sight.

ISIS radicals have begun setting fire to oil wells as they flee Mosul - with striking similarities to Saddam Hussain's defeated troops 25 years ago

A truckload of refugees flee the area as the flames and plumes of smock billow out behind them

The jihadis have begun feeling the key territory, as the battle to defeat the terror group starts to reach a conclusion

Iraqi army forces arrive in the village of Hut as smoke can be seen rising from oil wells behind them

A vehicle full of Iraqi soldiers arrive in Hut as an Iraqi flag is seen planted in the ground two years after the army's defeat there

The scorched earth tactics are used to limit the visibility of enemy pilots during air strikes. It also destroys millions of dollars worth of oil that is crucial in a way that is also extremely bad for the environment.

Civilians have already begun fleeing the villages around Mosul as the allies advance, in a bid to stay clear of the ongoing fighting.

The ongoing conflict brings Iraqi forces back to the scene of their disastrous collapse in 2014, but ISIS has long since been put on the defensive.

Commanders have said progress is already being made in the battle to recapture the area.

Iraqi forces have even been said to be 'ahead of schedule' as they push into the dusty plains surrounding the city, reports AFP.

More than 40,000 Iraqi and Kurd troops are leading the offensive, backed by air and ground support from a 60-nation US-led coalition, in what is expected to be a long and difficult assault.

From the south the Iraqi army are just 24 miles away, with Kurdish fighters 19 miles to the east.

Yet there is still a large amount of ground to cover before the city boundaries can be breached, with berms, bombs and burning oil trenches blocking the way.

As many as 5,000 IS soldiers are thought to remain in Mosul, with US President Barack Obama warning of the tough battle ahead.

Iraqi refugees are seen after they have arrived at Al Qayyarah town, which has been secured by Iraqi Army

Iraqi internally displaced civilians are seen as they have arrived at Al Qayyarah

The civilians fleeing from ISIS-controlled areas of Mosul to find safer locations while the battle rumbles on

More Iraqi army vehicles arriving in Hut as the oil wells burn - a tactic used to limit coalition forces pilots' eyesight

A line of Iraqi women and young children leave as they head towards Al Qayyarah

A group convenes as the near the town where the refugees are heading to escape the conflict

During a news conference with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi he said: 'Mosul will be a difficult fight. There will be advances and there will be setbacks.'

Even though the IS forces are vastly outnumbered, the battle looks set to be lengthy affair that could last months, according to the French Defence Minister.

Jean-Yves Le Drian said it won't be a 'Blitzkrieg', a lightning war achieving success in a short period of time.

'It's a city of a million-and-a-half inhabitants, so this is an affair that will last a long time,' he said, adding that the offensive is 'essential' to prevent new IS attacks.

French war planes are supporting the military campaign on the ground, where US, British and French special forces are advising local troops.

The images have already been compared to the tactics used in the 1991 Gulf War, when Saddam took his troops out of Kuwait with defeat in sight

The similar tactics were used by Saddam Hussein in Kuwait. The burning of oil wastes millions of dollars worth of supplies and damages the environment

Several blown-out wells damaged by retreating Iraqi soldiers in Al-Ahmadi oil field burn in the Gulf War of 25 years ago

Iraqi troops retreating after a seven-month occupation in 1991 smashed and torched 727 wells

The scorched earth tactics are used to limit the visibility of enemy pilots during air strikes

But most of the coalition's backing has come from air strikes, which reportedly destroyed 52 targets on the first day of the operation.

Despite the warnings of a protracted assault, Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said: 'Early indications are that Iraqi forces have met their objectives so far, and that they are ahead of schedule for this first day.'

The UN is expecting people to start fleeing the city 'basically any minute now', fearing IS soldiers will use the escaping residents as human shields.

And humanitarian agencies have warned the battle could unleash the 'worst man-made humanitarian crisis' seen in modern times.

'In a worst-case scenario, we're literally looking at the single largest humanitarian operation in the world in 2016,' said Lise Grande from the UN.

'In Mosul, depending on what happens militarily, a million people could move in a time span of a couple of weeks.'

Heavily armoured military vehicles head towards Mosul on Tuesday in a major offensive

'Ahead of schedule': Kurdish Peshmerga soldiers stand above a tunnel dug by ISIS

Long road ahead: The battle looks set to be lengthy affair that could last months according to the French Defence Minister

As the battle got underway, terrifying body cam footage captured the fierce fighting between the two sides.

A Kurdish fighter filmed the moment he sprinted across open land amid deafening gunfire and explosions during one of the early advances.

ISIS fanatics ran around 'like rats' as they emerged from a network of tunnels to surprise the soldiers with suicide attacks.