TOPSHOT - Iraqi forces deploy in the Bajwaniyah village, about 30 kms south of Mosul, on October 18, 2016 after they liberated it from Islamic State (IS) group jihadists.  


Tens of thousands of Iraqi forces were making gains on the Islamic State group in Mosul  in an offensive US President Barack Obama warned would be a "difficult fight". / AFP / AHMAD AL-RUBAYE        (Photo credit should read AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images)