Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga Recapture Four Areas from ISIS

Kurdish officials in Iraq announced that Kurdish Peshmerga forces launched an attack on Islamic State (formerly ISIS) positions in northern Iraq on Wednesday, February 1, reclaiming villages that had become operational bases for the group. According to Agence France-Presse, the Kurdistan Security Council stated that Peshmerga forces began a large-scale operation at 7 AM local time and have so far recaptured four locations, with their offensive to clear the area continuing. The international coalition against the so-called Islamic State reported that it conducted six airstrikes against the group's positions in northern Iraq on Tuesday and Wednesday. Three airstrikes were carried out near the city of Tal Afar and three others near Mosul. However, coalition officials did not specify the exact locations of the bombings. The coalition's statement indicated that the airstrikes, which took place in Nineveh province alongside the Peshmerga operations, targeted vehicles, military units, buildings, and heavy weapons of the Islamic State, as well as a bridge. The Islamic State captured most Sunni areas of Iraq in June of last year. These seizures not only expanded the territory under the group's control but also posed a threat to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, which includes three northern provinces. The failure of many Iraqi army units in the early days of the Islamic State's wide-ranging attack facilitated the advance of Kurdish forces to capture parts of northern areas that have been a contentious issue with the central Iraqi government for years. However, after beginning its advance towards the south and Baghdad in June of last year, the Islamic State turned its attention to the Kurds, pushing their forces back towards Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region. This military orientation of the Islamic State influenced the U.S. decision to initiate airstrikes. With the air support of coalition forces, advisors, and military training, Kurdish forces were able to reclaim large portions of the areas captured by the Islamic State. It appears that the recent military struggles in Iraq have created conditions for a change in geographical divisions in favor of the Kurds in the northern part of the country.