Kurdish forces, backed by U.S. airstrikes, launch offensive in Iraq

  • 8 years ago
Backed by a barrage of U.S.-led airstrikes, Kurdish forces on Thursday encircled Islamic State militants in Sinjar, a town that sits astride a key supply route to Syria and whose fall could presage a later assault on the extremist group's major Iraqi stronghold, Mosul.
The three-pronged attack on Sinjar involved some 7,500 Kurdish peshmerga fighters, including thousands of minority Yazidis battling to retake their homes.
The Islamic State's capture of the town last year precipitated an American air campaign after thousands of Yazidis became stranded on nearby Mount Sinjar.
The largest offensive yet launched by Iraqi Kurds against Islamic State forces, the battle is a key test of their military capabilities.