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Coalition Airstrike Destroys IS HQ in Mosul

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FILE - Iraqi soldiers fire a rocket toward Islamic State militants on the outskirt of the Makhmour south of Mosul, Iraq, March 25, 2016.
FILE - Iraqi soldiers fire a rocket toward Islamic State militants on the outskirt of the Makhmour south of Mosul, Iraq, March 25, 2016.

A coalition airstrike has destroyed an Islamic State headquarters complex in Mosul that was formerly a Turkish consulate, the Pentagon announced Tuesday.

The strike early Monday was carried out in "full coordination with the governments of Turkey and Iraq," Pentagon spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis told reporters.

"Destroying this compound … was in all of our best interests, and they [Turkey] agreed with that," Davis said.

The Pentagon says IS had repurposed the Turkish compound for use by senior leaders and as a weapons storage facility.

No high value targets were identified in the compound at the time of the strike, Davis said.

The Turkish foreign ministry issued a written statement that confirmed Turkey's approval had been sought and given for the airstrike. It said IS militants had occupied the complex since June 2014.

Davis described the targeted consulate as a "square block walled complex" with multiple buildings and a pool.

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