Fighting could come perilously close to ancient city of Hatra, a UNESCO World Heritage Site

Iraqi paramilitary forces battled the Islamic State group southwest of Mosul on Sunday, the second day of an operation to cut jihadist supply lines between the city and neighboring Syria.

Tens of thousands of Iraqi troops and Kurdish peshmerga fighters have been advancing on Mosul from the north, east and south after the launch on Oct 17 of a vast offensive to retake IS' last stronghold in the country.