In pictures: Civilians trapped under Islamic State make a perilous escape from Mosul

Jumah Diwan, 70, flees the fighting in Mosul's Wadi Hajar neighborhood on Saturday.

By Nabih Bulos

March 4, 2017 12:26 PM PT

Reporting from Mosul, Iraq —

As Iraqi security forces battle Islamic State in the streets and alleys of west Mosul, thousands of civilians trapped under the militants’ rule are taking the opportunity to flee.

Yet their escape is a perilous one. They navigate for hours through an active battlefield, where bombs, snipers, mortar rounds and airstrikes are a constant threat.

Bulos is a special correspondent.

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Nabih Bulos is the Middle East bureau chief for the Los Angeles Times. Since 2012, he has covered the aftermath of the “Arab Spring” revolution as well as the Islamic State’s resurgence and the campaign to defeat it. His work has taken him to Syria, Iraq, Libya, Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Yemen as well as on the migrant trail through the Balkans and northern Europe. A Fulbright scholar, Bulos is also a concert violinist who has performed with Daniel Barenboim, Valeri Gergyev and Bono.

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