VIDEO: ISIS turns Mosul railway tunnel into underground 'training base'
Mosul, Iraq— Iraqi Security Forces have discovered what they claim was a railway tunnel but turned into a training military base by ISIS militants in Mosul.
Iraqi commanders said there is evidence of ISIS using the base to train foreign fighters, children and teens for bombings and warfare.
It is near the airport, south of the city. And to enter the fortified base, which is 10 meters underground, one must walk through a tunnel.
The interior walls decorated with ISIS flags, drawings of light machine guns, have also a writing in Arabic which reads , "we will conquer Rome, God willingly."
It was discovered by the elite Rapid Response force that comes under the command of the Iraqi interior ministry, who spearhead the fresh offensive together with the US-trained Counter Terrorism Service (ICTS) in western Mosul, launched more than a week ago.
"It is designed as part of the training," one Iraqi commander told Rudaw. "The trainees, as part of their programs, should crawl onto these barrels and get themselves in the mud to pass this phase of training. As you see power has been extended to lighten this base. They have fully equipped it without any shortcomings. The majority of those who used to undergo training here were foreigners."
The facility was previously constructed by the Iraqi government as a railway tunnel.
Photo: AFP/Ahmad al-Rubaye