Iraqi special forces soldiers pose for photographs next to hanging body of ISIS fighter amid fierce battle for Mosul
Troops are fighting to free the city from the terror group's control after a two year occupation
HORRIFYING photographs show Iraqi special forces soldiers posing next to the hanging body of an Isis fighter.
In one image a soldier is shown pointing a mobile phone at two others who stand straight faced next to the body of a jihadist.
The photograph is believed to have been taken in Mosul - Isis's last stronghold in Iraq.
A fierce battle is raging for the city with militant fighters continuing to resist Iraqi soldiers.
The pictures show an Isis fighter strung up by his ankles using with appear to be electrical wires.
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In one image a soldier in full military dress rests his foot on the jihadi's back.
Mosul has been under the control of Isis for two years but Iraqi forces are pushing into the city.
Nearly 1,000 ISIS fighters have been killed in the bloody four week battle to drive them out of their Iraqi HQ.
But the move has come at a cost – with many Iraqi and Peshmerga victims.
This week Iraqi security forces discovered two mass graves near the city of Mosul containing more than 250 bodies.
The graves – including one in a deep well – were found near Hammam al-Alil and were created by ISIS militants. There is evidence dozens were thrown alive into the well.
Their discovery follows the uncovering of 100 decapitated bodies in another mass grave near the town just over a week ago.
The US-backed offensive to crush Islamic State in its last major city stronghold in Iraq entered its second month yesterday.
ISIS militants have been steadily retreating from areas around Mosul into the city since the battle started on October 17.
An elite army unit, the Counter Terrorism Service, breached the city's eastern limits for the first time two weeks ago.
Another breakthrough came on Wednesday, when Iranian-backed militias announced the capture of an air base west of Mosul.
The capture of the Tal Afar base also offers the mainly Shi'ite forces a launchpad for operations against ISIS targets inside Syria.
The offensive to take Mosul, the largest city under ISIS control in either Iraq or Syria, is turning into the biggest battle in Iraq's turbulent history since the US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003.
And those still living in the city are feeling the brunt as they are caught up in the ferocious fighting.
The militants have launched waves of counter-attacks against advancing forces, tying them down in lethal urban combat in narrow streets still full of residents.
The city's capture is seen as crucial towards dismantling the caliphate, and Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, believed to have withdrawn to a remote area near the Syrian border, has told his fighters there can be no retreat.
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