US defense secretary arrives in Iraq to assess Mosul fight
BAGHDAD — U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter has arrived in Baghdad to meet with American commanders and Iraqi leaders and to assess progress in the fight to retake the northern city of Mosul from the Islamic State group.
The unannounced visit on Sunday came as Iraqi security forces have been slowed in their nearly two-month-old offensive against IS, which has occupied Mosul for more than two years.
Carter flew into Baghdad aboard a military cargo plane.