Iraqi security forces advanced Tuesday into the center of Ramadi city, which has been under the control of the so-called ’Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant’ (ISIL) takfiri group since May.

Iraqi security forces advanced Tuesday into the center of Ramadi city, which has been under the control of the so-called 'Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant' (ISIL) takfiri group since May, a security official said.

"We went into the center of Ramadi from several fronts and we began purging residential areas," said Sabah al-Noman, spokesman of the Iraqi counter-terrorism service.

"The city will be cleared in the coming 72 hours," he said.

The fresh push was launched overnight and is meant to result in the full recapture of Ramadi, the capital of Iraq's western province of Anbar.

The fighting in Ramadi is led by the elite counter-terrorism force, backed by US-led coalition air strikes and also supported by forces from the police, the army and Sunni tribes opposed to the takfiri groups.

ISIL has lost several key towns in Iraq since Baghdad and the autonomous Kurdish region started fighting back following the takfiri group's devastating offensive 18 months ago.

The Volunteer paramilitary forces (Hashed al-Shaabi) were heavily involved in the battles that led to the recapture of towns such as Tikrit and Baiji, but they have remained on the fringes in the battle for Ramadi.