Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has arrived in Mosul to congratulate Iraqi forces for their victory over Islamic State (IS) in the city, according to BBC.

Abadi was in the city to announce its “liberation” and declare “victory,” his office said in a statement.

The Iraqi prime minister arrived to “congratulate the armed forces and the Iraqi people” on the final defeat of IS in Mosul on Sunday, the statement said. 

Iraqi forces, backed by US-led air strikes, have been battling to retake Mosul since October 17 last year.

IS militants seized it in June 2014 before taking much of Iraq’s Sunni Arab heartland and proclaiming a “caliphate” straddling Iraq and Syria.

In the past ten months, however, Islamic State was forced to retreat under the pressure of Iraqi government troops.