Leader of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has admitted the defeat in the recent fighting in the course of his farewell speech, which was addressed to supporters of the terrorist organization, the Alsumaria TV-channel reported on Wednesday, citing its own source.

The al-Baghdadi’s statement was directed to his closest preachers. The IS leader urged them to continue the fight, moving terrorists’ bases and strongholds to mountainous and remote areas of Syria and Iraq.

According to the TV-channel’s source, high-ranking terrorists of the group have already fled from Mosul, which is the unofficial capital of the IS and besieged by the Iraqi Army, and moved to the direction of the Iraqi-Syrian border.

Earlier on Wednesday, commander of the Iraqi Federal Police, Raid Shakir Jawdat, said that terrorists find themselves surrounded by government troops more and more often, and their commanders leave neighborhoods of the city, which are still under control of terrorists.

Units of the Iraqi Army managed to regain control over the last major road, which could be used by terrorists in order to withdraw their troops and equipment from Mosul.

The ground phase of the operation for the liberation of Mosul, in which units of the country’s regular army, formations of Shiite volunteers and Kurdish militia’s troops participate, was started on October 17 of the last year.

On February 24, the Iraqi government forces completely took control over the airport, recaptured a military base and a village, located to the south-west of Mosul, as well as entered the residential areas in the western part of the city.