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Forces Fighting To Deliberate Last ISIS Stronghold In Iraq; Iraq Military Fight to Liberate Mosul from ISIS; Video Shows Destruction in Mosul by ISIS; Chinese Launch Ambitious Space Program. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired October 17, 2016 - 01:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN BREAKING NEWS.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everybody. Thank you for joining us. I'm John Vause, with our breaking news this hour, 30,000 troops descending on Mosul in Iraq, with the biggest battle yet, against ISIS. It's been more than two years since the terror group took over the country's second largest city. Losing it would be a devastating blow. Iraqi troops, Peshmerga fighters and Shia paramilitary groups are fighting to retake the city. Iraq's Prime Minister tweeted moments ago, "The hour has struck. The campaign to liberate Mosul has begun. Beloved people of Mosul, the Iraqi nation will celebrate victory as one." He also made a televised statement on Sunday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HAIDER AL-ABADI, IRAQI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): Our dearest people in Nineveh province, the victory bell has rang, and the operations to liberate Mosul have begun. I'm announcing today, the beginning of these heroic operations to liberate you from the brutality and terrorism of ISIS. God willing, we will meet soon on the ground of Mosul and we will all celebrate the liberation and your freedom.

VAUSE: Senior International Correspondent, Ben Wedeman has been reporting on the build-up of this military offensive for days. He now joins us from east of Mosul in Erbil. Ben, everyone is expecting this to be a long and drawn-out fight. I know we're in the early hours of this offensive, but from what you can tell, from where you are, what is happening on the front lines around Mosul, right now?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It does appear, John, that movement is afoot. We've just received a statement from a Kurdish commander saying that 4,000 members of his force have begun to approach the town of Hazir to the east of Mosul and that, in fact, as they were approaching that town, a VBED, a Vehicle-Borne Explosive Device sent by ISIS, approached their positions, and that it was struck by a coalition aircraft. So, it does appear that this is not so much of what we saw, for instance, in the case of Fallujah, Ramadi, Tikrit, a slow encirclement of the city at hand, followed by weeks of waiting before moving in. It does appear that the Iraqi Forces, and we're talking about the Peshmerga, the Iraqi Army, the anti-terrorism forces, the federal police, the Hash al-Shaabi, the Shia-led paramilitary units, as well as tribal fighters are engaged in what seems to be a concerted push toward the city of Mosul itself. So, that's what we have so far. And of course, this push by the Peshmerga forces was preceded by intense airstrikes on Mosul and its outskirts, as well as artillery bombardments. It actually began day before yesterday. So, we do seem to see a lot of action already, in the area around Mosul, John?

VAUSE: In fact, Ben, what you're reporting from the Peshmerga commander seems to match what we heard just a short time ago from Nick Paton Walsh. And with that in mind, those Vehicle-Borne Explosive Devices, if you like, you know, suicide truck bombs, that's one of the biggest concerns that the coalition forces have. Also, the fact that it was taken out by a coalition airstrike, would seem to indicate that there are, you know, western allied troops, possibly U.S. troops, working at what are spotters for just this kind of situation?

WEDEMAN: Yes, there are U.S. and other western forces, actually on the ground, not on the front lines. Coalition officials are quick to stress, but very close to it. There's also an American artillery battery here as well, engaged in bombardment of Mosul. But what I've seen in the past in Fallujah, for example, what we saw was Iraqi anti- terrorist forces indirect contact with coalition aircraft on the ground, giving them precise coordinates for targets, wherever they were striking, and that's probably the case as well. There are Peshmerga officers in contact with coalition, the aircraft above. And this is a pattern that we've seen increasing in frequency. Oftentimes, they are fluent English-speaking Peshmerga or Iraqi army officers, who know exactly what they're doing, what they're targeting, and in this case, to good effect. John?

VAUSE: And Ben, you're in Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan region in northern Iraq. We're being told by the Iraqi Prime Minister, Iraqi forces will be the only ones to enter the City of Mosul. What's the likelihood of the Peshmerga fighters, the Kurds will stay back, and honor that from the Iraqi Prime Minister?

[01:05:00] WEDEMAN: That was the agreement worked out between the Kurdish regional government and the government, the central government in Baghdad, that the Kurdish forces would provide a supporting role, but would not actually go inside the City of Mosul. However, there are Kurdish neighborhoods within Mosul, and as the fighting continues, as it intensifies, perhaps as things get complicated, we cannot be absolutely confident that that agreement might not begin to fray. There are also involved in this fight, these so-called popular mobilization units, predominantly Shia-led groups. Now, they also have been told not to go inside the city. And that sort of is the red line for Turkey, which has made it clear that it has 2,000 troops inside Iraq, in Bashiqa, about 15 kilometers northeast of Mosul, that they are there to, for instance, protect Turkmen minorities, and they're also located in Tal Afar, which is a town east -- west of Mosul near the Syrian border, where the paramilitary units, the PMU, may also go. So, it's a very sensitive situation as this operation gets into way, and the best laid plans often go awry in these situations. John?

VAUSE: Sensitive and it is complicated. And finally here, Ben, the U.N. is warning a flood of refugees, could be caused by this military offensive, and many of those refugees, in fact most of them, could very well be heading for your location there. How well are the Kurds equipped to deal with so many people heading towards them needing food, safety and shelter?

WEDEMAN: In fact, I was speaking with the Kurdish foreign minister yesterday evening, and he said, "Look, we do not have the resources, perhaps to give them one bottle of water." The Kurds and the Iraqi government to a certain extent are depending upon the help of the United Nations, of other international humanitarian organizations. And what we've heard from the U.N., for instance, is that they are expecting anywhere between 300,000 to 1 million people to flee the area, Mosul and the area around it. And if it's anything over about 150,000, we were told, it would be a veritable tsunami, a catastrophe on the scale of Rwanda. What we saw, for instance, in Fallujah in June, which a much smaller number, about 80,000 people fled the city. There were international aid organizations there, trying to help, but they simply weren't able to. So, the worry is that the attention of the country, the government here, will be distracted from the military operation if, as is anticipated, hundreds of thousands of people flee from Mosul. So, it's going to be attention on the military operation, but extreme worry and attention that the humanitarian situation could eclipse it.

VAUSE: OK, Ben, thank you. Ben Wedeman live in Erbil, Northern Iraq, with the very latest. We should note this, Mosul is important for a number of reason, it was Iraq's second largest city, before the ISIS takeover, more than 2 million residents. It's located near oil fields and a major pipeline to Turkey. Also, a vital trade hub between Iraq, Syria and Turkey. And finally, it's the terror group's largest stronghold within Iraq.

CNN's military analyst, Retired Lieutenant Colonel Rick Francona joins us with more. Colonel, how much faith do you have in this agreement between the Kurds and the Iraqi government, and also with the Shiite Militia, that essentially it will be Iraqi forces only, that go into Mosul. And if that breaks down, how messy does this get?

RICK FRANCONA, CNN MILITARY ANALYST, RETIRED LIEUTENANT COLONEL: Yeah, and I think Ben put it quite well there, when the plan goes awry, and we know it's going to, you know, we say in the military, you know, with the first shot, the plan changes. So, as the Iraqi's get into that city, one -- if things go according to plan, you've got the Shia going to block in the west, you got the Kurds, you're going to put pressure from the east and the north, and the Iraqi forces are actually going to enter the city. Once Iraqi forces get in there, and they find out how tough of a slog this is going to be, I think they will welcome the participation of the Kurds to come in. Now, the Kurds are very good fighters, and there are Kurdish neighborhoods in Mosul, and they may need the help. The worst thing that could happen, is if the Iraqi forces get in there and get bogged down, because once they stop the momentum, you know, the ISIS fighters can hold them at bay for quite a while. So, I think, we're going to see modifications to that plan, and I think all sides will welcome it when it happens.

[01:09:59] VAUSE: OK. If we look at the numbers here, there's like 30,000 troops in this coalition. FRANCONA: Yeah.

VAUSE: The highest number I've seen, maybe 7,000 ISIS fighters inside Mosul. The U.S. puts it at maybe between 3,000 and 5,000. On paper, you know, to the layman, that does not look like, you know, an even fight. It looks like, you know, there's overwhelming odds for the coalition. So, I guess we have to keep in mind, that ISIS took this city with over 1,000 fighters two years ago.

FRANCONA: Well -- and also, don't forget that the defense always has the advantage. In this case, you normally want a 3 to 1 ratio in -- for the attackers. So, they'll need at least 21,000 troops if you use standard military fighting. But as we've talked before, the ISIS fighters have had two and a half years to fortify that city. They've got tunnels that go everywhere. They'll going to be able to marshal forces wherever they need them very quickly. So, even if you've got smaller numbers overall, if you can mass fighters where you need them, when you need them, that works. And of course, they're going to slow the Iraqis down with booby traps and IEDS and as Ben was talking about, these VBEDS, these vehicle-borne IEDS, minefields, oil wells -- oil fields on fire. So it's going to be a tough slog there. So, it may sound overwhelming, but in reality, that's not.

VAUSE: We also have a situation, the Iraqi forces have undergone a lot of training over the last couple of years. There's the Golden Division, which I think has a lot of battle experience from Fallujah and Ramadi. But what about other units within the Iraqi military? How well equipped, how much experience do they have? Because if this plan does work out, they will be the ones, you know, engaging in the urban warfare, going door to door.

FRANCONA: Yeah, I think the Iraqis may be a little optimistic, and that's what led to this particular plan, because in the past, when we look at the fighting in Ramadi and Fallujah and even Tikrit, we saw a lot of involvement of these Iraqi Shia militias. And they're very good fighters as well. So, it remains to be seen how even the consistency across the Iraqi army. Yes, they've got some good units, but are they all that good and will they all stay together, will it be a cohesive unit, is their command and control up to this? This is a big operation. This is a four times to anything -- four times larger than anything they've attempted so far. And remember, this is the new Iraqi Army after they collapsed in 2014. I don't know, John, it's going to be interesting to watch.

VAUSE: You know, I guess we'll find out soon enough. But I guess, that on the ISIS side -- but we're hearing these reports saying, you know, they are coming from the Iraqis and also coming from the Kurds, that essentially there is disarray within the ISIS ranks. There have been mass desertions, there's been some infighting as well, but, you know, the ISIS inside Mosul, the force there right now, is not the same force that took it two years ago. What have you heard about that?

FRANCONA: Yeah, there's a lot of this going on. And you can see what's happening as the Iraqi forces close in on Mosul, and we've seen this in Syria, we've seen as they're being kicked out of other areas. You know, their territory, the caliphate is shrinking. They can see the handwriting on the wall. They know that eventually, this fight in Mosul is going to kill a lot of them. This is - this is their last major stand in Iraq. If Iraq falls to the Iraqi forces, if -- I'm sorry, Mosul falls to the Iraqi forces, ISIS has gotten nowhere else to go, but to retreat into Syria. And once they're out of Iraq, then the Iraqis probably will pull back and try and rebuild their country. And then, we have to worry about ISIS in Syria. But, you know, ISIS knows that this is -- this is probably a losing proposition, but there's nowhere for them to go.

VAUSE: Question of when, not if, and the timing, of course, what happens afterwards, are the big unknowns right now. Colonel Francona --

FRANCONA: Exactly.

VAUSE: -- as always, thank you so much.

FRANCONA: Sure.

VAUSE: Thank you, Sir. ISIS could see some significant opposition from inside Mosul, as it battles to maintain control. Arwa Damon reports now, on the city's secret resistance.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Operating deep within the shadows of ISIS territory in Mosul, is a network so secretive, even its own members, do not know each other's identities. The letter "M" spray painted on Mosul's walls. "M" for Muqawama, the resistance. The message to ISIS? We are here. We are among you. The Mosul battalions watch for weaknesses in ISIS defenses, carrying out hit and run operations, or waiting for a moment to strike isolated targets, like this check point on the outskirts of the city. This man, Abu Ali, is one of their liaisons. How did the Mosul battalions even managed to initially organize themselves?

ABU ALI, LIAISON (through translator): It started as two friends, who trust each other, and they would arrange to target ISIS, in a particular point.

DAMON: The same happened elsewhere, and by the end of 2014, the Mosul battalions had formed. Their weapons are basics, but they found and hid in the city, or what they snatched from ISIS.

ALI (through translator): The roadside bombs they use, they would steal from ISIS. ISIS puts bombs in certain areas and those who have previous military experience would go and steal those bombs and place them where they target ISIS.

DAMON: They operate in two to three-man cells, independent of one another. No cell knows specifically of another. No fighter knows the name of more than two others. Abu Ali calls the man he says is with the battalions in Mosul. He's speaking from an orchard just outside of the city. Talking on the phone is punishable by death. ALI (through translator): We carry out assassinations, sniper operation against senior ISIS members, we target the houses they live in.

DAMON: The distorted voice in this video says they assassinated an ISIS fighter. The images then show what they say is the dead man's I.D., pistol and suicide belt. And Abu Ali says they are providing for intermediaries intelligence and coordinates to the coalition. Here, the aftermath of a strike they say was based on their information. And they are waiting for what they call zero hour. Distributing leaflets warning ISIS its end is coming. They are ready, ready for the day the Iraqi army breaches the city, and they rally the people to rise.

Arwa Damon, CNN, Erbil, Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: The U.N. is warning the battle for Mosul could cause a humanitarian crisis with more than a million people forced to flee the city. More than 61,000 civilians have already left since March, and more than 3 million Iraqis have been forced from their homes since the start of 2014, millions more across the country are in need of humanitarian assistance.

Brett McGurk, the U.S. special envoy to the anti-ISIS coalition tweeted his support for the operation. Tonight Prime Minister Abadi issued orders to initiate major operations to liberate Mosul after two years of darkness under ISIL terrorists. And then he added this, "Godspeed to the heroic Iraqi forces, Kurdish Peshmerga and Nineveh volunteers. We are proud to stand with you in this historic operation.

A lot more on the offensive in Mosul, but also, when we come back, Donald Trump losing more ground to Hillary Clinton in the latest polls. How it could be shaping his message on the campaign trail. And Hillary Clinton has her own problems to worry about. The latest installment of the stolen e-mails. All that, still to come.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: Breaking news now, a major offensive is underway in Iraq to drive ISIS from one of its last strongholds. Mosul was the country's second largest city before it was overrun by ISIS in 2014. As many as a million people may still be there. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al- Abadi announced the offensive during a television address, saying, "God willing, Mosul will soon be liberated." A 30,000 strong coalition force is massed outside Mosul, but the prime minister says only the Iraqi army and national police will enter the city.

Two new polls show Hillary Clinton leading Donald Trump heading into Wednesday's third and final Presidential Debate. An NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll has Clinton up 11 points nationally, 48 to 37. An ABC News/Washington Post shows a much closer race. Clinton has a four-point lead that's within the margin of error. Trump's been losing support ever since a recording from 2005 was released in which he brags about groping women. Since then nine women have come forward to accuse the candidate of sexual misconduct. Trump dismisses them all as liars, says they're all part of a smear campaign by the media and he's ramping up his claims the election is rigged.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The election is being rigged by corrupt media pushing false allegations and outright lies in an effort to elect Hillary Clinton president. But we are going to stop it. We are not going to back down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Hillary Clinton has her own problem. WikiLeaks has released more hacked e-mails from her campaign. We get the details on that from Joe Johns.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: WikiLeaks today releasing thousands more of the hacked e-mails from the account of Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman John Podesta. This weekend, the batches of e-mails have included everything from apparent texts of Hillary Clinton's speeches, addressing Goldman Sachs, debate over what types of campaign donations to accept. The inner workings of the campaign, discussions over allegations concerning Bill Clinton and the controversy that erupted over Hillary Clinton's private e-mail server. One campaign advisor near (INAUDIBLE) and writing to Podesta in August of last year, urging Clinton to apologize for it, something she would only do the next month, quote, "She always sees herself bending to their will when she hands over information, et cetera., But the way she has to bring here is in the remorse, not the way she has to bend here is in the remorse. Not in the -- if I had to do it all again, I wouldn't do it. A real feeling of this decision I made created a mess, and I'm sorry i did that. No one thinks she doesn't have the judgment to be president, she's not reaffirming a negative characteristic in saying sorry. According to the e-mail, Podestra essentially replied, agreeing that he was frustrated, too, and suggesting they were trying to get her to apologize. The Clinton Campaign has been put on the defensive in light of the hacking and has tried to deflect attention by blaming Russia. Here's what Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Tim Kaine said today.

SEN. TIM KAINE (D-VA), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There does need to be a consequence when a foreign nation tries to destabilize an American election, which is what Donald Trump encouraged back in, you know, late July. He said, "Hey, Russia, go see if you can cyber hack and find things that will help me win." But when a foreign government tries to do this, there has to be a consequence. There will be time for figuring that - what that consequence is, but you can't let it go unchallenged, because if you do, you just would -- could encourage more of it.

JOHNS: Russia has not officially been blamed for this hack, but has been fingered by the U.S. for other WikiLeaks releases. For its part, republicans are trying to put more attention on the hacked e-mails, for example, once again bringing attention to the cozy relationship, some Clinton Foundation donors had with the state department.

GOV. MIKE PENCE (R-IN), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I hink what Donald Trump is talking about is, frankly, what appears to be the monolithic support of the national media for Hillary Clinton's campaign. Their wilful ignorance about the avalanche of hard evidence -- not allegations, John, but hard evidence now coming out in these e- mails of collusion and pay for play politics, and the American people are just tired of it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JOHNS: The state department and the campaign have denied any pay for play allegations. CNN cannot independently verify the authenticity of the e-mails, and the Clinton campaign has neither confirmed nor denied whether they are authentic. Back to you.

VAUSE: Thanks to Joe Johns. Now, sort of come here, ISIS could be facing its biggest military defeat ever. We will have the latest on the battle to liberate Mosul in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody. I'm John Vause. Time to check the headlines this hour.

(HEADLINES)

[01:30:00] VAUSE: There's been constant bombing and the sound of rocket fire near Mosul in recent hours. A coalition of 30,000 troops, led by the Iraqi military, are fighting to liberate the northern city. But they are likely facing a long battle. ISIS is believed to have booby trapped the city. There are tunnels also under ground. If Mosul does fall it would be a devastating blow to the terror group.

Here is why the city is so important. It was Iraq's second-largest city before ISIL took over. The city is near oil fields and a major pipeline to Turkey. It was also a vital trade hub between Iraq, Syria and Turkey. And it's the terror group's largest stronghold within Iraq.

The fight to liberate Mosul is just beginning. It will be extremely complex and a very long operation.

CNN's intelligence and security analyst, Bob Baer, is familiar with the region from his time as a CIA operative. He joins me from Moscow.

Bob, if we look at the way this is playing out, the forces, the coalition forces on the three sides, the north, south and east, and this sort of open area to the West. What is going on there is that essentially an area to allow civilians out, to allow is fighters to leave or is that essentially going to be some sort of kill zone by air power? BOB BAER, CNN INTELLIGENCE & SECURITY ANALYST: Well, John, that's

what I'm afraid of, it's become a kill zone. The Shia militias are positioned there and to stop the Islamic State fighters from escaping to Syria. But the civilians are going to be caught in the middle of it. The U.N. has just come out and said we're talking about a million-plus refugees are going to be on their way out of Mosul. The question is, where do they go. The Kurds in the north, in Kurdistan, the Iraqi Kurdistan are unable to accommodate them and the Turks, they go to Turkey and what happens to them then?

VAUSE: Yeah, this is part of that humanitarian crisis that the U.N. is essentially warning about. How dire is the situation inside Mosul right now? It's been described as being like a --

(CROSSTALK)

BAER: Excuse me. It's bad. The government is saying to take shelter. To civilians, stay at home. Don't leave the city, but that's not going to happen. This largely is a Sunni city. A lot of Shia troops are going to be coming in. Their inclination is going to be to flee, and they will. It's going to take several months to take this city. I don't see the Islamic State giving up. They essentially have nowhere to go. The situation is dire. I understand why Baghdad feels it has to take Mosul back to destroy the Islamic State. Islamic State is killing a lot of people continually. It's a vicious regime. The problem is there's no political solution at the end of the day. Baghdad has been talking about creating a cantonment for Sunnis in Anbar Province but that hasn't come about. There's still no dialogue between Sunnis, Iraqis and Baghdad which makes the situation as we've been talking about pushing it toward civil war of some sort in Iraq, which is a possibility.

VAUSE: One of the big issues, when ISIS first arrived, greeted by the Sunni population. But that was two and a half years ago. Conditions have deteriorated badly inside Mosul. Has there been much work done by the Iraqi government to try and win over the residents of Mosul, to try to win their trust ahead of this offensive?

BAER: trying to recruit Sunni tribes to be part of taking Mosul. Ultimately, it's failed. They've been promising the Sunnis they'd give them a portion of the oil. There will be safe zones. But there's a confidence between the Sunni and Shia government of Baghdad, it's nonexistent. So no matter what they've said, the Sunnis don't trust them.

[01:35:18] VAUSE: Yeah, OK. So, obviously, a question of when the city falls and what happens next. That's what we're all waiting to find out.

Bob, thanks for being with us.

BAER: Thanks, John.

VAUSE: Video released last year shows some of the destruction and terror brought by ISIS in Mosul. The group says the video was shot in a museum that God ordered them to destroy centuries-old artifacts. Ben Wedeman reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WEDEMAN (voice-over): Incomprehensible vandalism. Unidentified men smash priceless artifacts to the floor of the Mosul museum while others take sledgehammers to statues that survived for centuries only to be shattered by those whose fanaticism seems to know no bounds. This video was posted online by ISIS' media office in Mosul. Complete with an explanation by an unnamed man.

"These antiquities and idols behind me," he says, "were from people in past centuries and were worshipped instead of God. When God Almighty orders us to destroy these statues, idols and antiquities," he adds, "we must do it, even if they are worth billions of dollars."

Among the artifacts destroyed, the famous Assyrian winged bulls of Nineveh dating back to 700 B.C., defaced with a drill.

(on camera): Equally significant is what doesn't appear on the video. A source in Mosul tells us ISIS has already sold hundreds of antiquities from the museum on the international black market.

(voice-over): This footage was posted just days after reports emerged that ISIS militants in Mosul burned thousands of books and manuscripts dating back to the Ottoman Empire.

The irreplaceable heritage of a nation, indeed, of all mankind, destroyed callously destroyed ISIS' reign of madness.

Ben Wedeman, CNN, Irbil, northern Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: A short break here. When we come back, we'll turn to Aleppo. Pressure is now building on the West to do something about the crises there. Coming up, the debate to stop what's known as the Grozny solution.

Also ahead, the forgotten war in Yemen and why world leaders are suddenly searching for a solution.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:40:43] ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

VAUSE: Hello, everybody. More now on the Iraqi offensive to retake the northern city of Mosul.

CNN's Nick Paton Walsh joins us live. He's on the battle lines not far from the city of Mosul with the Peshmerga force.

Nick, what's the latest from where you are?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): John, I can't reveal our exact location but we're with Peshmerga units that have for about two or three hours been headed in the direction of the urban sprawl of Mosul. Still some very distance behind me. We're at a berm near the first village they came across on the way.

We've seen an intense exchange of fire given how we saw it hit by a coalition air strike about an hour and a half ago roughly. We've since then seen what Peshmerga fighters here fear was, in fact, a suicide bomber in a car driving towards our position here. That sparked considerable panic. And then it seems like some sort of explosive device took it out. That could be one of the many coalition aircraft we've been hearing in the sky above us here.

But this small village behind me has sent a lot of fire back towards the Peshmerga. They have old weaponry over here, rifles, heavy machine guns consistently jam, but this is the first wave of what many say is the last chapter of ISIS in Iraq, this assault against Mosul here. Many had hoped the advance towards the city of Mosul -- I can't be too geographically specific, but if our cameraman pans slightly to this direction and I hope our signal stays strong as we do that.

You can see some of the environment we're standing in here. A lot of black smoke on the horizon and we've heard the consistent thuds of artillery or mortar landing in the past hours or so. But still, this stage, the hopes maybe this advance across the plains towards Mosul would be effortless. That perhaps ISIS had been pounded adequately by coalition air strikes that they simply weren't going to be able to put up a fight. Well, those hopes seemed to have dimmed given the resistance here. The coalition has put massive preparation into this. There's a foreign presence in the Iraqi convoys we're seeing here. We don't give too much away for the operation security people we're traveling with and our own.

But, still, over this berm here is a remarkably small hamlet putting up fierce resistance and it does show that ISIS are willing to defend even the smallest positions in the direction of Mosul, John.

VAUSE: So, Nick, given what's happened in the past in Iraq, in cities like Fallujah, like Ramadi when there was a slow build towards ultimately going into the city, it seems watching it from here, from the safety of Los Angeles, that over there, it is a much faster burn, that's they're moving faster towards Mosul.

OK. I think we've lost --

PATON WALSH: I've lost you here, but if you can see me.

No, I've lost the phone signal entirely.

VAUSE: No, we can still hear you, Nick.

OK. Unfortunately, we've lost Nick Paton Walsh who was reporting there.

In fact, Nick was reporting about an hour or so ago he was with that Peshmerga group of fighters moving towards Mosul and there was one of those improvised truck explosives heading towards him. It appears to have been taken out by coalition air strikes. There was a huge explosion. As you can see from his position there, a lot of smoke on the horizon. We understand ISIS has set fire to crude oil trenches around the city, a defensive measure, which would not be particularly effective, but one of the defensive measures they are expected to take.

[01:44:38] We'll have a short break. When we come back, China making a major move towards a future in space. We'll have details on its ambitious mission. A live report from Beijing in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: Let's take you back to Nick Paton Walsh in northern Iraq near Mosul.

As best you can tell right now, what is ISIS using to try and repel this offensive by the Peshmerga fighters who you're with?

PATON WALSH: Sorry you didn't catch what I was saying because of the bad connections we have here.

But ISIS were using a car bomb driving toward this position. Significant panic among Peshmerga here. They think something else took it out. Maybe one of the launch missiles in their possession. Quite a distance away. They're very worried one of those devices could be back en route to them here. In the last moments a sign of how they feel.

We heard a plane in the sky. As we have done for the past two or three hours since this offensive launched and during the night before. Saying maybe some air strikes. Can't see that on camera here for obvious reasons. We're receiving incoming fire over the berm here. Some of it quite accurate and close.

The key thing about what we've seen is this was the first wave of Peshmerga that went in on the assault against Mosul. There had been a thought ISIS might choose not to defend the area.

[01:50:14] We're seeing over this way intense black smoke we can presume from oil fires. ISIS has been trying -- those black plumes have been for quite some time. Peshmerga and the Iraqi Army will be dealing with this. It's open, it's hostile. Progress is slowed by many mines, we understand. And this is just far away from the city itself. I can't give you our precise position.

The broad concern being if they're willing to put up a fight of this extent this far from the city, what awaits them in the open sprawl when the Iraqi army actually moves into that densely populated area. The United Nations warning maybe 1.5 million people at risk in that urban area. They are split in the middle, east and west, by a river.

Still, the scene here, at times confusion. The Peshmerga do want to move into the village and secure it. See if the forces can advance but it's proving a complex task. A lot of mortars being used around us, incoming and outdoing. Peshmerga often hampered by the weaponry they have. It's old. Heavy machine gun consistently jams. Overwhelming use of force at their disposition and the foreign presence here as well. There was a foreign presence in the convoys. We shouldn't elaborate too much for the security of those there and they are working with. Certainly, a coalition very much backing the support. The hope had potentially been their air power would level or at least push back. A sniper rifle being used just on the berm behind me. That's the Peshmerga firing. Perhaps coalition air power can ease the job of the Peshmerga moving into this area. Doesn't seem number the case right now. ISIS seems it will be to fight at this second behind me which looks like it has 30 or 40. This could be a long slog ahead.

VAUSE: So explain for us exactly -- it looked very relaxed around you despite the explosions we hear from time to time. Exactly what are those fighters waiting for? Why are they grouped there? What essentially would be their next move? What will be essentially the direction or the cue, if you'd like, for them to move on.

PATON WALSH: I wouldn't be very popular if we understand what the Peshmerga's plans are in the coming hours. They have this substantial berm they can hide behind. They're facing an enemy as badly equipped as they are. Yes, the Peshmerga have air power at their disposal but its use. U.S. officials talked about no need for a $100,000 warhead to take out one gunman in a separate building. So a lot of potential the Peshmerga can have at their potential. But in the hours and days ahead, they -- (INAUDIBLE). Not just one, but six or seven that can hamper the progress of coalition, Iraqi, Peshmerga forces toward Mosul.

This is just the easy bit. This is just the very first few hours of what's more symbolically, many think, the last chapter of ISIS in Iraq. It's proving very difficult -- John?

VAUSE: Is there an intensity to this offensive which we did not see in the offensive to retake cities like Fallujah or Ramadi from ISIS earlier this year?

PATON WALSH: I'm glad you can still hear me. We're having communication difficulties at this stage. But we are still seeing this Peshmerga group stationed quite calmly on the berm behind us and the continued sound of heavy fighting along this area here. I must say this is just the very first wave of the fighting.

John, back to you.

VAUSE: OK, Nick, thank.

Nick Paton Walsh there, live outside Mosul with the Peshmerga forces where they have paused for a moment. They've regrouped. They're on a berm. You can see them trading gunfire, we believe, with ISIS militants not far from Nick's location. Obviously, we'll try and check in with Nick to find out the latest in the hours ahead.

In the meantime, quickly before we go, China is ramping up its space program with its longest mission yet.

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[01:55:12] VAUSE: The Shenzhou 11, it blasted off Monday with two astronauts on board. They are headed to a new space lab to spend 33 days in orbit.

Matt Rivers live in Beijing.

So, Matt, 33 days. How will they fill the time?

MATT RIVERS, CNN ASIA-PACIFIC EDITOR: With lots of scientific experiments, John. We're told that 30 of the 33 days will be spent fully engaged in experiments in the fields of medicine, physics and biology.

But, really, this individual mission is just part of a broader scope of major funding and big-time ambition for the Chinese Space Program. This particular mission, their longest one ever, more than doubling the longest time the taikonauts spent in space previously. This is the sixth manned mission the country has undertaken since October 2003. Last month, they launched their newest space lab which is where these two taikonauts will be heading. That, in and of itself, is just a prototype. It's just a test for what they want to do which is put a more permanent space station up by 2022 -- John.

VAUSE: Matt, we're out of time. We'll leave it there, but thank you. Thank you for joining us. I'm John Vause.

Please stay with us. George Howell and Natalie Allen will continue with our breaking news coverage after the break.

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