Iraqi forces have taken full control of Mosul airport from the Islamic State group, according to a senior commander.

"I can confirm that the airport is fully liberated," said Brigadier General Abbas al-Juburi, who is part of the team leading the assault.

However, another source within the Iraqi forces was less confident, saying they had control of most of the airport and the sprawling military base nearby.

Iraqi forces recapture Mosul airport from the Islamic State group

Fighting certainly continued around the airport on Friday morning, with columns of black smoke seen rising from the area.

Federal police units, supported by jets, drones and helicopter gunships, began the airport attack on Thursday morning, and were met by fierce resistance from the jihadist fighters determined to hold on to the strategically important location.


Video: Iraqi helicopters and ground forces fight for Mosul

Once secured, the airport and the Ghazlani military base will be used as the launch-pad for the final onslaught to remove IS from western Mosul, its last stronghold in Iraq.

There are reports from the Iraqi military that their forces have already entered the first neighbourhood in the western half of the country's second-largest city.

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Some 100,000 Iraqi troops, alongside Kurdish fighters and Shia militias, are involved in the campaign to retake Mosul, which began in October.

In January, government forces won back control of the eastern half of the city following months of fighting, but the final battle for western Mosul is expected to be especially difficult.

The latest operation began on Sunday, with the Iraqi military saying it has since retaken about 50 square miles south of the city.

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The old, narrow streets - where an estimated 750,000 civilians still live - mean forces will need to leave their military vehicles and engage in close-quarters fighting, taking care to avoid the terror group's IEDs.

The remaining jihadists are all-but besieged having destroyed the bridges across the river Tigris which divides the city between east and west.

Mosul has been in IS hands since 2014 when its forces swept into vast areas of Iraq and Syria and declared its self-styled caliphate.