[Vanier:] The Iraqi forces say they are going to declare victory against ISIS in Mosul within days. They are now engaged in a fierce battle with holdouts in the old city. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh has seen some of the most intense fighting first-hand and he has this update from Irbil, Northern Iraq.
[Nick Paton Walsh, Cnn Sr. Intl. Correspondent:] It is clear, according to our sources on the ground, that in the overnight period, Iraqi forces have managed to secure the al-Nuri mosque, that great symbolic place for ISIS, where Abu Baker al-Baghdadi gave his one singular public appearance, announcing the beginning of the caliphate. They appear to have moved past it and further deep into the old city of Mosul, hundreds of meters now potentially between them on the river that marks the end of ISIS territory. But that's no comfort to thousands of civilians still caught in that area that ISIS control. We saw some of them emerging ourselves yesterday, talking of an absence of anything apart from war to being shelled constantly, some injured hobbling simply out of the rubble. Before the question, though, it is simply a matter of trying days, says the U.S.-backed coalition and the Iraqi government until Mosul falls entirely. The broader question is how does Iraq deal with the lingering insurgency that ISIS will become in the months and years ahead. They're already seeing parts of it reaching into Baghdad and elsewhere. There are certain towns like Hawija that ISIS still have a substantial presence in. This isn't really over. Politically, the message may be out that they've defeated ISIS. But politically, too, they have to enter into room to reconciliation here. Remember the got of Baghdad is predominantly Shia; they've had a lot of Shia forces fighting against areas which are predominantly Sunni. Remember the Sunni-Shia split in Iraq, the Sunnis were in control on the Sudan. Now the Shia are dominating control. The question is how do you get that Sunni part of the population, the extremists, of whom felt more affinity frankly with ISIS than anybody else here. How do you get them to come together and for Iraq to heal? Well, the pace in which declarations of victory have been made suggest maybe reconciliation isn't on the top of people's agenda We'll have to see in the months ahead because, without a broader healing here, we may see something like ISIS rear its head again.
[Vanier:] Our Nick Paton Walsh there reporting. And I spoke to retired U.S. Army Lt. General Mark Hertling earlier. He reminds us that retaking the city is not the end of the story.
[Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling, Cnn Military Analyst: Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling, Cnn Military Analyst:] Well, the next phase of the operation is going to actually more difficult
[Hertling:] Cyril, and that's when the Iraqi government decides to reinforce with assistance, aid in rebuilding. When my organization along with the Iraqis fought there in 2008, it was against Al Qaeda. They had damaged a great deal of the city. But it was nothing like what ISIS has done in the last two years. They have destroyed the city and the fighting there with the artillery and the coalition bombing has destroyed it even more. So the Iraqi government from Baghdad, a Shia government has to support the rebuilding of this city while providing humanitarian aid for the close to 1 million people who live in the city. That's going to take a lot of money. The last time they attempted to do this, corruption splintered away some of that money. It didn't get to the places it needed to go, the rebuilding did not take place. And it generated some ill feelings even more dire, ill feelings toward the Iraqi government. So Mr. al-Abadi really has to make this happen in order to bring the citizens of Mosul back under the patronage of the Iraqi government from Baghdad. That's going to be tough.
[Vanier:] So rebuilding the city of Mosul is going to key. But what about security because ISIS, even if it's defeated in its stronghold of Mosul, it won't be totally gone from Iraq?
[Hertling:] It won't and there's a couple of places that I would name: Shirqat, Hawija, Al-Qa'im, areas in Kirkuk province, which is to the southeast of Mosul and even as far south as Diyala province, which is just north of Baghdad, still has pockets of ISIS fighters. So the security forces in those areas have to continue to fight; at the same time, one of the biggest problems that we experience and I think the Iraqi security forces are going to continue to experience, the borders with Turkey and Iran and Syria are very close to the city of Mosul. If those borders aren't controlled and they've always had difficulties doing that, then you're still going to have challenges with additional new fighters coming in and ISIS will try and rebirth themselves. That's a fact. They may do it in Iraq; they may do it in other places but there's certainly going to be continued fighting in the northern Nineveh plains of the Iraqi government.
[Vanier:] And while Mosul is by far the largest city where ISIS holds territory in Iraq, militants still occupy some smaller areas and attacking the capital, Baghdad. As the political crisis deepens in Venezuela, the death toll increases. On Friday new clashes between demonstrators and police killed two more civilians, bringing the death toll up to 83. And with a struggling economy many Venezuelans are also running out of basic resources. Our Rafael Romo takes a closer look.
[Rafael Romo, Cnn Sr. Latin Affairs Editor:] People that we've talked to on the street in Caracas, the capital, say that, in Venezuela, you don't thrive but barely survive. For many people, a typical day in Venezuela involves standing in line for several hours outside a supermarket or a bakery to be able to buy anything they can. In many instances, they leave empty-handed after several hours of waiting. There is also a big cash problem in Venezuela. The government promised last December that it would make available higher denomination bills and people have just started to see them at ATMs but only in the capital. Why is there such a shortage of cash? Well, the main problem is inflation. The International Monetary Fund forecasts inflation will rise to nearly 1,700 percent this year. And, finally, the international community is concerned about an inquiry targeting Venezuelan attorney general Luisa Ortega Diaz. Why is she being targeted? Well, she broke ranks with President Nicolas Maduro and accuses the government of violating the rights of protestors and ignoring the constitution. The U.N. issued a statement Friday calling a pretrial hearing "deeply worrying" Rafael Romo, CNN.
[Vanier:] A city in southwestern Iran may have just tied the hottest temperature ever recorded on the planet. Now Canada enjoying something of a moment on the world stage. Its prime minister, Justin Trudeau, is a social media darling. It has been applauded for its openness toward refugees and now it is celebrating a major milestone. Security preparations are underway on Parliament Hill in Ottawa to mark Canada Day. It's the country's anniversary and this year it's extra special. Canada turns 150 years old. Some royal visitors have already kicked off the festivities. Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall started their national tour in the country's far north. Two more things for you before we wrap up this show. One of the world's top football players is now off the market. Barcelona star Lionel Messi married his long-time girlfriend, Antonella Roccuzzo. The couple have known each other since they were little and they have two children together. The ceremony at a hotel and casino complex in Argentina was, as you would expect, a star-studded event. Many football celebrities in attendance and it made a big splash in Argentina's press, one newspaper calling it "the wedding of the century." And also this, some bad news, if you're a huge of Adele, the singer is hinting that she may never tour again. She says it's all due to medical reasons. The star wrote a letter to all of her supporters, calling herself really more of a homebody, adding that touring just doesn't suit her very well. She also cancelled the final two performances of her current show. Don't be too afraid; Adele has taken breaks before, most recently making a comeback with the huge hit, "Hello." So all is not lost. Thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Cyril Vanier and I will be back with the headlines in just a moment. Stay with us.