US defence chief in Iraq to review Mosul op

Baghdad :  US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter held talks in Baghdad on Sunday to discuss the coming stages of the offensive to retake the city of Mosul from the Islamic State jihadist group.

Carter flew to the Iraqi capital on an announced visit to "survey key locations directly supporting the battle for Mosul", the Pentagon said in a statement.

The United States leads an international coalition providing assistance in the form of air strikes, equipment, training and advise on the ground to Iraqi forces battling the jihadists.

US forces are stationed in Qayyarah, the main staging base for the southern front of the Mosuloffensive that was launched on October 17, as well as in the autonomous Kurdish region.

Around 5,000 US troops are deployed in Iraq as part of an "advise and assist" mission to support Iraqi federal and Kurdish peshmerga forces battling jihadists.

US special forces are also active on the ground in Iraq, as well as in neighbouring Syria, where another offensive is under way to retake the other major remaining IS bastion of Raqa.

On Saturday, Carter told a security forum in Bahrain that Washington was sending 200 extra troops to join the 300 it has already deployed to support the Raqa campaign.

Carter met US troops, senior coalition commanders and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi in Baghdad, a coalition spokesman said.

He was also expected to hold meetings with Kurdish leader Massud Barzani during his visit to Iraq, possibly his last as US defence secretary.

Abadi had promised Mosul would be retaken by the end of 2016 but the going has been tough for Iraqi forces inside the densely populated city and commanders have warned the battle could go on for months.