ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Kurdish Peshmerga forces trying to protect Christians reported clashes with Islamic insurgents in northern Iraq, as militants who have been on a territorial rampage since more than a fortnight ago were reported to have taken a town only an hour from Baghdad.
The deployment of the elite Kurdish Zeravani forces in the Nineveh plains has helped many residents stay in their villages, unlike much of the population of Mosul, which fled the city at the outbreak of hostilities between Iraqi forces and ISIS.
The Nineveh Plain has the largest population of Christians in Iraq, where Christian communities have been largely devastated due to years of fighting and emigration. ISIS has especially targeted Christians across Iraq.
Large parts of Nineveh lie in so-called “disputed territories,” which are claimed both by the autonomous Kurds and the embattled Arab-led government in Baghdad.
Since the fall of Mosul, the Kurdistan Regional Government has taken charge of all disputed territories, including the oil-rich city of Kirkuk.
Full report here: Peshmerga Fight ISIS in Nineveh; Militants an Hour Away from Baghdad
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