Iraq urges Daesh to surrender amid Tal Afar operation

Iraqi authorities on Monday called on Daesh militants to surrender in their last strongholds in northern and western Iraq.

In a statement, the Defense Ministry said warplanes dropped thousands of leaflets calling on Daesh militants to put down arms in the areas of Huwaija in northern Iraq and Al-Qaem, Rawa, Anah and Akashat in western Iraq.

The move came one day after the Iraqi army launched a fresh military operation to recapture the northwestern city of Tal Afar from Daesh.

The Iraqi army said its forces have captured several villages on the outskirts of the predominantly Turkmen city, which was captured by Daesh in mid-2014 along with vast swathes of territory in northern and western Iraq.

The UN estimates that some 10,000 to 40,000 people are still living in Tal Afar and surrounding areas.

Daesh's self-proclaimed "caliphate" effectively collapsed last month, when the Iraqi army captured Mosul from the terrorist group after a nine-month military campaign.