Iraq Troops in Final Battle with Islamic State in Falluja

It comes a week after the government launched a concerted effort to retake the city, which has been held by the jihadists since 2014.

The Iraqi army said it has begun an operation to storm Falluja, a bastion of so-called Islamic State (IS).

Further, UN said there are reports of people starving to death there, and of being killed for refusing to fight for IS.

An estimated 50,000 civilians are trapped inside, with only a few hundred families able to escape.