Turkey, world welcome Iraq's victory over ISIL in Mosul

Iraq has received congratulations from several countries, including Turkey, for its landmark victory over the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Mosul, a city where the jihadist group had first declared its so-called caliphate. 

Iraqi forces launched back in October their campaign to take Mosul, which was seized by the jihadists during a 2014 offensive that also saw them take control of large parts of Iraq and neighboring Syria.

Turkey was among the first countries to extend congratulations to Baghdad, offering help to rebuild the city. 

"It is happy for us to hear that the struggle against DAESH in Iraq is coming to an end and that results have been obtained in Mosul," President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said at the World Petroleum Forum in Istanbul on July 10, using an Arabic acronym for the jihadist group. 

"The situation in Mosul is very important for us," Erdoğan added.

In 2014, personnel at Turkey's Mosul consulate were taken hostage by ISIL after the jihadist militants seized control of Iraq's third largest city.

The hostages were freed in September following a secret operation conducted by Turkey's National Intelligence Organization (MİT).

"Mosul is in ruins. Who will pay the costs?" Erdoğan asked. 

"We welcome the successful completion of the military operation conducted since October 2016 for the liberation of Mosul," said the Turkish Foreign Ministry in a statement.

"In the upcoming period, we are ready to contribute to the reconstruction efforts of Mosul and to the elimination of the conditions that led to the emergence of DEASH and other radical organizations," it said. 

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the victory is a "critical milestone" in the...