US forces help Iraqis build bridge on way to Mosul

WASHINGTON —  A small group of US troops helped Iraqi forces build a bridge across the Tigris River last week that will support Iraq's campaign to retake Mosul from the Daesh terror, a US military spokesman said on Wednesday.

This was the first time American forces accompanied the Iraqi army closer to the front lines of battle since US Defence Secretary Ash Carter said in April that they would be allowed to do so. Previously, advisers were limited to larger divisions further back from battlefields.

Colonel Chris Garver, the US military spokesman in Iraq, said the operation involved fewer than 10 US troops.

The American engineering team was sent on July 20 to assist a battalion of Iraqi soldiers install a floating bridge over the Tigris near Qayyara Air Base, recently retaken from Daesh by Iraqi forces, Garver said.

The United States has conducted similar lower-level missions with Iraqi special operations forces and Kurdish peshmerga, but this was the first such mission with the Iraqi army, Garver said.

"The use of the bridge connecting the west and east sides of the Tigris... will greatly improve maneuverability and shorten lines of communication for the ISF [Iraqi security forces] as they prepare for the eventual assault to liberate Mosul," Garver said.

The bridge is the second to be installed by Iraqi security forces in their battle against Daesh. The first was in Ramadi last year.

The United States has escalated its military role in Iraq and Syria over the past year to capitalise on gains against the militant group.

On Wednesday, Carter said the US-led coalition would look for opportunities to attack Daesh from the south in Syria, potentially expanding US-led efforts that recently have focused on northern Syria.

"We will aggressively pursue opportunities to build pressure on ISIL [Daesh] in Syria from the south, complimenting our existing and robust efforts," Carter said, using an acronym for Daesh. He was speaking to troops at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.