US backed Iraqi forces are inching closer to the main government buildings in western Mosul in the offensive to oust Isis militants, a media officer said.

"The provincial council and the governorate building are within the firing range of the Rapid Response forces," a media officer was quoted by Reuters news agency as saying.

More from IBTimes UK

On Monday, they captured a damaged bridge in Mosul that could connect the eastern part of the city to the western side. The forces captured eastern Mosul last month after 100 days of battle against the jihadists.

Meanwhile, at least 1,000 civilians fled the fighting in west Mosul and arrived on Monday to the sector held by Counter Terrorism Service (CTS). According to the United Nations world food programme, the humanitarian situation in west Mosul is grave.

The people who were treated at the CTS clinic include a boy with a gunshot, a pregnant woman who had to have both legs amputated, a little girl with blood on her face and a woman with shrapnel in her hand.

CTS Brigadier General Salman Hashim said: "Most of those who arrive to this point are hungry and thirsty and suffering neglect, and need medical care."

Government forces have so far captured the Mosul Airport, a military base, a power plant and three residential districts in western Mosul. They are 1km away from the old city centre and the government complex. If they succeed in capturing these, it will mean the fall of Mosul.

Mosul
27 February 2017: A displaced Iraqi woman who just fled her home, waits to be transported while Iraqi forces battle with Islamic State militants in western Mosul, Iraq Zohra Bensemra/Reuters