Slutspel i Irak? ISIS och allierade erövrar Mosul

Cockburn, en flerfaldigt prisbelönt journalist vid den engelska dagstidningen The Independent, ger den första sammanhängande skildringen av terrorregimen IS framväxt. Hans analys av bakgrunden är kristallklar.

Islamiska staten är en produkt av krigen i Mellanöstern, framför allt Irakkriget och det pågående kriget i Syrien. Ansvaret faller tungt på USA, Europa och deras regionala allierade i Turkiet och Gulfstaterna.

Coalition: Peshmerga gain key terrain west of Kirkuk

ULAIMANIYAH -- Peshmerga forces, with the support of US-led coalition airstrikes against Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) positions, have taken control of a strategic ridge west of Iraq’s northern city of Kirkuk, the US military announced Wednesday.

The Combined Joint Task Force statement said the gains were made as part of an operation launched on March 9, during which Peshmerga forces significantly hindered the militants’ ability to maneuver in the area.

Kurdish forces also further pushed ISIS fighters back from the substantial oilfields of Kirkuk, as they liberated an area of approximately 78 square kilometers.

They forced militants to retreat 3 to 5 kilometers from the outskirts of Kirkuk and claimed vital sections of Route 80, which runs northwest to the ISIS-held city of Mosul.

It clearly demonstrates the ability of Peshmerga forces to degrade Daesh influence in Northern Iraq.”

http://www.nrttv.com/en/iraq/2015/03/12/coalition-peshmerga-gain-key-terrain-west-of-kirkuk