The Battle of Zumar was fought between the
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
An Islamic state is a state that has a form of government based on Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a translation of the Arabic term ...
and
Kurdish
Kurdish may refer to:
*Kurds or Kurdish people
*Kurdish languages
*Kurdish alphabets
*Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes:
**Southern Kurdistan
**Eastern Kurdistan
**Northern Kurdistan
**Western Kurdistan
See also
* Kurd (dis ...
Peshmerga
The Peshmerga ( ku, پێشمەرگه, Pêşmerge, lit=those who face death) is the Kurdish military forces of the autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq. According to the Constitution of Iraq, the Peshmerga, along with their security subsidiaries, ...
troops over the city of
Zumar in
Nineveh province
Nineveh Governorate ( ar, محافظة نينوى, syr, ܗܘܦܪܟܝܐ ܕܢܝܢܘܐ, Hoparkiya d’Ninwe, ckb, پارێزگای نەینەوا, Parêzgeha Neynewa), also known as Ninawa Governorate, is a governorate in northern Iraq. It has an ...
in northern Iraq. It started when ISIL launched an offensive on Zummar from 1–4 August 2014, resulting in its capture.
On 25 October, after US airstrikes,
Kurdish
Kurdish may refer to:
*Kurds or Kurdish people
*Kurdish languages
*Kurdish alphabets
*Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes:
**Southern Kurdistan
**Eastern Kurdistan
**Northern Kurdistan
**Western Kurdistan
See also
* Kurd (dis ...
Peshmerga
The Peshmerga ( ku, پێشمەرگه, Pêşmerge, lit=those who face death) is the Kurdish military forces of the autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq. According to the Constitution of Iraq, the Peshmerga, along with their security subsidiaries, ...
troops succeeded in recapturing the city, after an unsuccessful attempt to hold it in September.
Capture by ISIS
Beginning on 1 August 2014, ISIS attacked Kurdish Peshmerga positions in and around the city of
Zumar. According to Kurdish sources, the initial advance of ISIS was repelled with some 100 jihadist militants and 14 Kurdish troops killed; 38 more ISIS jihadists were captured by Peshmerga. However, three days later, ISIS captured the town as well as its oil field.
Aftermath
Kurdish counteroffensive
On 31 August Kurdish Peshmerga troops entered Zumar. The Kurdish forces launched the offensive after capturing the Ain Zala oilfields just outside Zumar two days earlier. ISIL fighters torched three oil wells as they retreated from Ain Zala. The Peshmerga have been able to recapture several ISIL-controlled towns after receiving weaponry from the United States and other nations. As a result of the attack by Peshmerga forces on the Zumar, more than 92 ISIL militants have been killed and a further 160 taken to hospitals in
Mosul
Mosul ( ar, الموصل, al-Mawṣil, ku, مووسڵ, translit=Mûsil, Turkish: ''Musul'', syr, ܡܘܨܠ, Māwṣil) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. The city is considered the second larg ...
with severe injuries. Kurdish forces were eventually forced to leave Zumar after enduring heavy losses.
French air strikes on IS
Qassim al-Moussawi, a spokesman for the Iraqi military, said on 19 September 2014 that four French air strikes with
Dassault Rafale
The Dassault Rafale (, literally meaning "gust of wind", and "burst of fire" in a more military sense) is a French twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter aircraft designed and built by Dassault Aviation. Equipped with a wide range ...
fighter aircraft, had hit the town of Zumar, killing dozens of militants, AP news agency reported.
Kurdish recapture of Zumar
On 25 October 2014, Kurdish forces launched an offensive on the town. ISIS forces put up fierce resistance, and launched a car bomb attack on Peshmerga forces. Iraqi television said that 50 ISIS fighters were killed and 10 vehicles destroyed. After seventeen US airstrikes on the town, Kurdish forces took control of it. Their future goal is to regain control of nearby
Sinjar
Sinjar ( ar, سنجار, Sinjār; ku, شنگال, translit=Şingal, syr, ܫܝܓܪ, Shingar) is a town in the Sinjar District of the Nineveh Governorate in northern Iraq. It is located about five kilometers south of the Sinjar Mountains. Its p ...
, which was the scene of a massacre against
Yazidi
Yazidis or Yezidis (; ku, ئێزیدی, translit=Êzidî) are a Kurmanji-speaking endogamous minority group who are indigenous to Kurdistan, a geographical region in Western Asia that includes parts of Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Iran. The ma ...
Kurds. The ''
Daily Beast
''The Daily Beast'' is an American news website focused on politics, media, and pop culture. It was founded in 2008.
It has been characterized as a "high-end tabloid" by Noah Shachtman, the site's editor-in-chief from 2018 to 2021. In a 20 ...
'' reported that American and German special forces were involved in coordinating airstrikes in Zumar; a report which The Pentagon denied.
References
See also
*
Spillover of the Syrian Civil War
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