"The Peshmerga (Kurdish fighters) have liberated Makhmur and Gwer," Peshmerga spokesman Halgord Hekmat told AFP.Hekmat said "US aerial support helped” to liberate the towns. Representatives of the regional authorities also confirmed that the Kurdish troops had recaptured the towns following fierce battles.
Late on Thursday, US President Barack Obama gave the green light to US airstrikes targeting positions of Islamic State (IS) militants fighting in Iraq against Kurdish forces defending the city of Erbil. The President also authorized humanitarian aid to Yezidi Kurds who, as Obama stated, face “genocide.” Several airstrikes have been conducted over the past few days.
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