The outskirts of Sinjar form one of the most important frontlines against Islamic State in Iraq.
The city was once the heartland of the Yazidi people, but since the militants arrived, this rural hub has been a war zone.
The main road that runs through Sinjar links Mosul to Raqqa, making the area strategically important to both Islamic State and the Kurdish forces trying to drive them out.
Brigadier General Ezadeen Saddo is leading the Peshmerga’s efforts to retake the city.
He said his forces have been ready for months, but they have been waiting for a dramatic increase in coalition airstrikes.
“In the battlefield, we have some officers who are directly in touch with the operations room in Erbil,” he said.
They use GPS to choose their target, and the operations room gives it to the aircraft.
And…
“After that, the Peshmerga on the ground and the mortar units will use this information so that the offensive is successful as soon as possible.”
Kurdish forces face difficult combat conditions as they start to move in and fight Islamic State house to house.”
Sounds an awful lot like Fallujah for the Kurds. Father Frank can relate.
Dewkh Nawsh, meaning “Self-sacrifice,” have alligned with the Kurdish Peshmurga to battle ISIS in northern Iraq. Composed of local Iraqi and Western Christian volunteers, they are the last line of defense protecting tens of thousands of Christian refugees from slaughter or enslavement.
The British S.A.S. has been operating in Iraq since last summer. Their campaigns to disrupt the ISIS supply lines have been met with a good deal of success. The british newspaper, The Daily Mail, has reported on these “Quad Squads” and provided a real-life example for my book, The Book of Frank: ISIS and the Archangel Platoon. Team Sanddancer was the result of my research on this group of warriors. You can read about their accomplishments -> HERE.
