In Iraq, fighting to retake Mosul from the self-proclaimed Islamic State has entered its third day. The U.S.-led coalition force of about 30,000 includes Iraqi security personnel, Kurdish fighters, Sunni Muslim Arab tribesmen and Shia Muslim paramilitaries. The Pentagon has confirmed U.S. special forces are on the ground in Iraq and taking part in the battle, despite President Obama’s pledge against having boots on the ground. They face an estimated 5,000 Islamic State fighters in and around Mosul. Commanders say the operation is going as planned, though ISIS fighters slowed advancing troops with suicide car bomb attacks. A Peshmerga military commander told CNN it could take two months for the troops to recapture Mosul, which ISIS has controlled for two years. President Obama said Iraq’s fight to take Mosul from ISIS will be successful but difficult.

President Barack Obama: “Mosul will be a difficult fight, and there will be advances, and there will be setbacks, but I am confident that just as ISIL has been defeated in communities across Iraq, ISIL will be defeated in Mosul, as well, and that will be another step towards their ultimate destruction.”

The United Nations humanitarian coordinator for Iraq said 200,000 people might need shelter during the offensive. We’ll have more on Mosul after headlines