Iraqi Shi’ite militias say they have driven ISIL fighters from an air base west of Mosul.<br /><br /> The victory, if confirmed, would threaten the Sunni group’s supply route from Syria to its last major stronghold in Iraq.<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /> #BREAKING: #PMF announce full liberation of #TalAfar airport after fierce clashes with #ISIS killing many of them #MosulOffensive pic.twitter.com/i5vKvuYPi5— Iraq Insider (@iraqinside) November 16, 2016<br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> What is the strategic significance?<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> If confirmed, the capture could be a significant development in the campaign to recapture Mosul, ISIL’s de facto capital.<br /><br /> The group’s forces swept through Iraq in 2014 and set up a self-declared caliphate in a swathe of Syria and northern Iraq.<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> Tal Afar<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> The town lies around 60 kilometres west of Mosul on the main road to Syria.<br /><br /> Its seizure could also alarm Turkey, which is wary of Iraqi Shi’ite involvement in the civil war in Syria.<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> The Mosul campaign<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> While the Shi’ite coalition is fighting ISIL west of Mosul, regular army and police units are trying to advance from the other sides.<br /><br /> They are backed by Kurdish Peshmerga fighters deployed in the north and the east.<br /><br /> Iraqi counter-terrorism forces breached ISIL defences in eastern Mosul two weeks ago.<br /><br /> However, they have faced resistance from militants who have fought back with suicide car bombs, snipers and waves of counter-attacks.<br /><br /> The government forces have been fighting in a dozen of the estimated 60 neighbourhoods on the eastern part of Mosul, which is divided by the Tigris River.<br /><br /> They have yet to enter the town from the northern and southern sides.<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /> Iraqi special forces begin new push deeper into the northern city of Mosul in fight against Islamic State group. https://t.co/NI32jl8Mir— The Associated Press (@AP) November 16, 2016<br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> When did the campaign start?<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> On October the 17th.<br /><br /> Using air and ground support from a US-led coalition, it is the biggest military operation in Iraq in more than a decade, since the 2003 invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> A springboard for Syria?<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> Popular mobilisation, known locally by its Arabic name, Hashid Shaabi, says it plans to use the Tal Afar air base to take the battle against ISIL into Syria.<br /><br /> The group will fight on the side of President Bashar al-Assad, an ally of Iran.<br /><br /> Although it officially reports to Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, it is mainly trained and equipped by Iran.<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> The prospect of sectarian strife<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> The advance towards Tal Afar has raised the prospect of sectarian strife.<br /><br /> It has also alarmed neighbouring Turkey.<br /><br /> The town had a mixed population of mainly Shi’ite and Sunni Turkmen before ISIL captured it in 2014.<br /><br /> Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said last month that Turkey is reinforcing its troops on the border with Iraq and will respond if the militias “cause terror” in Tal Afar.<br /><br /> Iraq has sought to calm fears that the operation to recapture Tal
