MOSUL: An Iraqi commander Wednesday said he believes some 300 Daesh (ISIS) fighters remain in the small patch of territory still controlled by the group in Mosul's Old City.

Lt. Gen. Sami al-Aridi of Iraq's special forces said that the extremists are confined to a 500 square meter area.

He spoke the day after Iraq's Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi congratulated the armed forces on a "big victory" in Mosul, despite ongoing clashes.

Daesh captured Mosul in a matter of days when it swept across northern and central Iraq in the summer of 2014. Iraqi forces backed by a U.S.-led coalition launched a major operation to retake the city in October.