Baghdad, Aug 26 (IANS): Iraqi security forces on Saturday liberated three neighbourhoods of Tal Afar city from the Islamic State (IS) terror group.

The federal police forces and paramilitary Hashd Shaabi units recaptured the neighbourhoods of Qadsiyah Oula, Qadsiyah Thaniyah and al-Rabie, Lt. Gen. Abdul-Amir Yarallah from the Joint Operations Command (JOC) said in a statement.

The latest advance of the federal police brought the number of liberated neighbourhoods to 19, reports Xinhua news agency.

On August 20, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, also the commander-in-chief of Iraqi forces, declared the start of an operation to regain control of Tal Afar and nearby areas from IS militants.

Tal Afar, some 70 km west of Mosul, is the last IS stronghold in the province of Nineveh.

The International Organisation for Migration estimates that some 10,000 to 40,000 people are still living in the city.

There were between 1,500 and 2,000 IS militants left in Tal Afar.