Bombed Mosul bridge still lifeline for long-suffering civilians

Displaced people who fled Islamic State militants, cross the bridge in Al-Muthanna neighborhood of Mosul, Iraq, January 9, 2017. Picture taken January 9, 2017. REUTERS/Alaa Al-Marjani

MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - The rubble of a bridge blown up by Islamic State in Mosul to block advancing Iraqi forces has become a lifeline for civilians as more and more of the northern city breaks loose from the grip of the ultra-hardline militants.

Men and women, children and the elderly scramble down the banks of the Khosr River, a tributary of the Tigris some 30 metres wide and a metre deep which counter-terrorism forces crossed last week in a nighttime raid.