Iraq launches Mosul offensive to drive out Islamic State

Peshmerga forces with western forces advance in the east of Mosul to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq

ASIA: Iraqi government forces, with air and ground support from the U.S.-led coalition, launched an offensive on Monday to drive Islamic State from the northern city of Mosul, the militants' last major stronghold in the country.

Helicopters released flares overhead and explosions could be heard on the city's eastern front, where Kurdish fighters moved forward to take outlying villages, a Reuters correspondent said.