More than 5,500 buildings in Mosul's Old City need repair, U.N. says

ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - The offensive to retake Mosul from Islamic State has damaged thousands of structures in the historic Old City and destroyed nearly 500 buildings, satellite imagery released by the United Nations on Thursday showed.

Iraqi forces backed by the United States have pushed Islamic State into a 250-square-metre strip of territory along the Tigris River, prompting fighters to ramp up suicide bomb attacks, commanders said.