Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said early Monday that the long-awaited operation to liberate Iraq's second largest city, Mosul, from ISIS occupation has begun.

Haider al-Abadi said in a televised address from the operation command center that only military and police forces would enter Mosul city centre which has been under ISIS occupation since August 2014.

The bombardment around Mosul has reportedly intensified after the Prime Minister's statement.

Haider al-Abadi stated late yesterday that they would not allow the participation of the Turkish military in the Mosul operation which -he said- would be joined only by Iraqi forces.

The Iraqi Prime Minister remarked that they would use their right to defense and fight Turkey if necessary in the event of such an attempt by the Turkish state that remained in Iraq despite numerous calls and warnings by Iraqi officials that Turkish troops occupied Iraqi land and should leave immediately.

Haider al-Abadi pointed out that Turkish state forces have dispatched troops to Bashiqa outside their knowledge and tried to convince the Iraqi Minister of Defense for this deployment.

Al-Abadi reiterated their call to the Arab League and the United Nations (UN) Security Council to put pressure on the Turkish state to withdraw their forces from Iraq, and to make their attitude clear as to whether they side with Iraq or the Turkish state.