Iraqi forces achieved the first goal of a new offensive against the Islamic State group on just its second day today, penetrating the northern town of Sharqat. <br/><br/>Some residents celebrated in the streets as government troops and paramilitaries entered the town centre and tore down the black flags of the militants who had ruled it with an iron fist for more than three years. <br/><br/>Sharqat is the first goal of a major offencive launched yesterday to recapture an IS-held enclave centred on the insurgent bastion of Hawija, one of just two pockets still controlled by the militants in Iraq. <br/><br/>Sector operations chief said some 20 villages around Sharqat had also been recaptured from IS.