Heavy Clashes Between Peshmerga and ISIS in Sinjar City

Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces, who have recently succeeded in breaking the siege of Mount Sinjar in northern Iraq and providing aid to the Yazidis in the area, engaged in clashes with ISIS forces in Sinjar city on Sunday, December 30. According to the Associated Press, heavy explosions and intense gunfire were heard from Sinjar city on Sunday. The Peshmerga forces, who managed to break the siege of Sinjar city by the Islamic State (formerly ISIS) with a heavy air support from the United States on Wednesday, captured more areas in northern Mount Sinjar on Saturday. The 'Kurdistan Regional Security Council' of Iraq also announced in a statement that the Peshmerga forces began operations on Saturday and managed to capture the 'Mashraf' area on the outskirts of Sinjar. The statement added that at least 32 trucks of food supplies were sent to the besieged citizens in Sinjar city. According to the report, the aid was sent through a route secured by the Peshmerga. The Associated Press reported that U.S. and coalition aircraft have flown over Sinjar city. A spokesperson for the Iraqi Peshmerga also stated that the Kurdish forces are advancing towards Sinjar city in coordination with coalition forces. The Islamic State forces captured large areas of Sunni regions in Iraq, including the city of Mosul, during the summer of this year. This year, ISIS launched attacks on areas where tens of thousands of Yazidis lived, committing widespread massacres and forcing thousands to seek refuge in Mount Sinjar. Some news agencies have cited the widespread massacre of Yazidis by the Islamic State as one of the reasons for the initiation of U.S. air operations against ISIS in Iraq. Meanwhile, Nawaf Khalil, a spokesperson for the Syrian Democratic Union Party, stated that Kurdish forces have managed to advance in six neighborhoods of Kobani city and have besieged a cultural center captured by the Islamic State in the east of the city. He added that the Kurdish forces managed to capture the 'Yarmouk' school in southeastern Kobani, where at least the bodies of eight Islamic State fighters were found.