(VOVworld) - Iraqi special forces entered Mosul University yesterday/ on Friday in their latest advance along the eastern front as they battle Islamic State militants for control of the city.

Iraqi Special Operations Forces (ISOF) carry weapons during clashes with Islamic State militants in frontline near university of Mosul, Iraq, January 13, 2017. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad

The university is located in the eastern section of Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city which is divided by the Tigris River into roughly an eastern and a western half. A senior Iraqi counter-terrorism service (CTS) officer said the university was the most important Islamic State base in the eastern half of the city. As the Mosul operation enters its fourth month, Iraqi forces have retaken about a third of the city that has been under tight IS control for more than two years.