In the push to free Mosul, Kurdish Peshmerga forces ideally wanted a political plan -- not just a military one -- to help retake the city from ISIS, Iraqi Kurdish President Massoud Barzani said.
"We would have loved to have a political plan along with a military plan, how to manage Mosul, how to administer Mosul, because Mosul has a variety of religions, with ethnicities," Barzani told CNN's Christiane Amanpour on Wednesday.
Iraqi Kurds 'would have loved' political plan for Mosul
Iraqi Kurds 'would have loved' political plan for Mosul 01:46
But he acknowledged that having one probably "would have taken a longer time."
The operation to free Mosul from two years of ISIS rule marks the first time Kurdish Peshmerga and Iraqi forces have fought against a common enemy, Barzani said.
"We are looking for a good solution for Mosul," he said.
But the battle to free Iraq's second-largest city could be marked with months of bloody fighting.
