Peshmerga forces have no short-term plans to withdraw from the town of Bashiqa, which they captured earlier this week from the so-called ‘Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant’ (ISIL) terrorist group, a high-ranking Peshmerga officer said Thursday. Peshmerga Chief-of-Staff Jamal Eminki said Bashiqa’s “liberation” from ISIL had been achieved ...
The battle for Iraq’s second city Mosul neared the remains of ancient Nimrud on Thursday, the military said. Troops and volunteer fighters were advancing on two villages held by the Takfiri ISIL group near the ancient site some 30 kilometers (20 miles) south of Mosul, the Joint Operations Command said. ...
