U.S Defense Secretary James Mattis arrived in Iraq Tuesday, to meet with Iraqi leaders and discuss defeating the so-called Islamic State.
This comes three days after a battle, recapturing the city of Tal Afar (west of Mosul city) from Islamic State had started.
Iraq’s latest objective in the U.S led campaign is to defeat ISIS, Iraqi Prime Minister, Haider Al Abadi said.
“ISIS’ days are certainly numbered,” Mattis informed reporters. However, he added that the fight against the extremist group “is not over yet, and not going to be over anytime soon.”
Mattis and Abadi plan to discuss the future of U.S. forces in Iraq after the fall of the remaining cities under Islamic State, and the role they could play in stabilizing operations, according to Reuters.
Iraqi forces had retaken 235 square kilometers in the first 24 hours, officials said.