Shiite militia says it's taken Mosul-Raqqa road

(The Daily Star)- A spokesman for a leading Shiite militia says its fighters have gained control of a highway linking the ISIS-held city of Mosul to the Syrian city of Raqqa, the de facto capital of the militants' self-proclaimed caliphate.

The spokesman for the Hezbollah Brigades, Jaafar al-Husseini, said Wednesday that his troops are now cutting the main supply line to the militants.

Earlier this week, Shiite militias, known as the Popular Mobilization Units, joined the operation to retake Mosul from ISIS. They say they will not enter the city of Mosul and will instead focus on retaking Tal Afar, a town to the west that had a Shiite majority before it fell to ISIS in 2014.