Jihadists blew up Mosul's iconic leaning minaret (left) and the adjacent Nuri mosque where their leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared a “caliphate" in his only public appearance in 2014. Pics/AFP

Islamic State militants on Wednesday blew up the Grand al-Nuri Mosque of Mosul and its famous leaning minaret, Iraq's military said in a statement, as Iraqi forces seeking to expel the group from the city closed in on the site.