MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Some 6,000 Kurdish Peshmerga forces are participating in the operation near the Syrian border, as well as 1,500 Yazidi fighters and 300 Kurdistan Workers' Party militants, according to the BBC broadcaster.
US-backed Kurdish Peshmerga forces launched a major ground offensive in Iraq in a bid to recapture the town of Sinjar from ISIL terrorists, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced in a press release on Thursday.
"This operation will degrade Daesh's [ISIL] resupply efforts, disrupt funding to the terrorist group's operations, stem the flow of Daesh fighters into Iraq, and further isolate Mosul from Ar Raqqah,” Combined Joint Task Force — Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman Christopher Garver said.
The Peshmerga forces managed to “successfully establish” blockades along Highway 47, a major IS supply route between Raqqah, Syria, and Mosul, Iraq used to transport oil, weapons and fighters, CENTCOM said.
CENTCOM added that the Peshmerga forces would continue operations to re-establish government control over “key portions” in and around Sinjar, and that the US-led coalition intends to increase pressure on the terrorists in the region.
