"Relations with Turkey back on track": Iraqi PM

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said on Tuesday that the country's relations with Turkey were no longer strained and were back on track, also announcing that about three months were needed to remove Daesh from Iraq.

Abadi announced the new plan after responding to comments by the commander of the U.S.-led coalition supporting Iraqi forces that it would take as long as two years to eliminate Daesh and its cells in Iraq and neighbouring Syria.

"The Americans were very pessimistic. They used to talk about a really long period, but the remarkable successes achieved by our brave and heroic fighters reduced that. I foresee that in Iraq it will take three months," he said.

The announcement comes as U.S.-backed forces battle to dislodge the militants from Mosul, their last major stronghold in the country.