By Ahmed Qasim and Ibrahim Salih

MOSUL, Iraq

Seven Iraqi soldiers were killed in deadly clashes with Daesh militants in Mosul on Sunday amid a major offensive to recapture the northern city from the terrorist group. 
Daesh militants launched a car-bomb attack and engaged in clashes with Iraqi forces in Tamim district in eastern Mosul, army officer Mohanad Nour al-Din told Anadolu Agency. 
He said Iraqi troops backed by U.S.-led coalition warplanes, however, managed to thwart the attack. 
“Seven soldiers were killed and four others injured in the attack,” he said. 
No information was yet available about Daesh losses in the fighting. 
On Saturday, Iraqi forces resumed its offensive in Mosul -- which began in late October -- after a week-long hiatus. 
Iraqi officials have vowed to recapture Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, from Daesh before the year-end. 
The city was overran -- along vast swathes of territory in northern and western Iraq -- by Daesh in 2014.