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 Al-Alam is the last Islamic State stronghold that needs to be
cleared before government forces and militiamen can enter the city
of Tikrit itself, which has been under militant control since last
summer.
Military commanders said Islamic State militants were still holding
out in houses in the northern section of al-Alam, but the army and
mainly Shi'ite militia had retaken the town center and were
preparing for street fighting to seize the rest.
"Snipers and booby traps are slowing our advance to completely
control all parts of the town," said army captain Wisam Ibrahim,
speaking from al-Alam.
 "We're waiting for the army helicopters to secure the way for a
smooth advance for the troops," he said.
The battle for Tikrit its aftermath will inform any plans to move
further north and recapture Mosul, the largest city under Islamic
State rule.
The campaign to retake Tikrit, which began one week ago, is the
biggest since Islamic State swept across the north last year, and
the government hopes it will reverse the militants' momentum.
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Islamic State has sent reinforcements to Tikrit from other parts of
its self-proclaimed caliphate further north, where it came under
attack on Monday from Kurdish forces around the oil-rich-city of
Kirkuk.
(Reporting by Ahmed Rasheed; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)
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