BAGHDAD (AP) – The Latest on the developments in Iraq as government forces and their allies press ahead in the battle for IS-held city of Mosul (all times local):

7:33 p.m.
The U.N. humanitarian chief says the United Nations believes up to 1.5 million people in Mosul will be at great risk of being targeted, caught in cross-fire, forcibly expelled or used as human shields during the operation to oust Islamic State extremists from the northern Iraqi city.

Stephen O’Brien said the protection of the elderly, disabled and pregnant women who may not be able to move to safety without assistance cause the greatest concern based on previous evidence of IS practices.

He told the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday that no large-scale displacement of civilians has been reported on the third day of the Iraqi government-led operation.

But O’Brien said the U.N. anticipates “a displacement wave of some 200,000 people over the coming weeks, with up to one million displaced in the course of the operation in a worst-case scenario.” Of that one million, the U.N. believes 700,000 would require shelter and emergency assistance, he said.
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7:19 p.m.
The chief of the Russian military’s General Staff says it has been monitoring the operation to retake the Iraqi city of Mosul from the Islamic State group and is concerned that militants might escape to Syria.

Gen. Valery Gerasimov said Wednesday that “despite all the uproar on Western TV channels, the operation hasn’t started in earnest yet.”

He said the Russian military was using aerial assets to monitor for “possible attempts by the militants to break out of Mosul or leave the city for Syria unimpeded.”

He said: “we hope that our partners from the international coalition realize what could be the consequences of large groups of IS fighters roaming the Mideast region. They must be destroyed on the spot, not driven from one country to another.”

Russian warplanes in neighboring Syria have been carrying out airstrikes for more than a year in support of Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces.
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6:33 p.m.

The top commander of U.S. land forces in Iraq says U.S. Army Apache attack helicopters are striking Islamic State group targets in support of Iraq’s push to retake Mosul.

Adding U.S. attack helicopter crews to the unfolding combat is an extra element of risk for American troops. Maj. Gen. Gary Volesky said Wednesday the Apaches were being used at night to strike targets from a distance. He said the mere presence of the Apaches was a confidence booster for Iraqi soldiers.

Volesky is commanding general of the 101st Airborne Division. He spoke by video link to reporters at the Pentagon from his headquarters in Baghdad.

Volesky said he believes Islamic State fighters in Mosul will put up a stiff defense in the city but eventually lose and morph into an insurgency.

Copyright 2016 The Associated Press.