Peshmerga

Inside the Battle for Mosul: Gunfire, Car Bombs and Suicide Attacks

On a road several kilometers outside Mosul on Monday, a convoy of Peshmerga fighters got a taste of the resistance the Iraqi army and police are facing inside the volatile city. This stretch of road and the villages along it — once they’re fully cleared of ISIS militants — will represent a great prize for […]

Mosul offensive: What happens when the dust settles?

The much-anticipated U.S.-Iraqi push into ISIS-controlled Mosul has begun in earnest. Over 1,000 civilians have fled since Monday. According to a U.N. spokesman, around 1,200 civilians have escaped to a UN-operated refugee camp across the border in Syria. Meanwhile, combat operations have made progress, liberating nearly 20 villages on the road to the city center. […]

Mosul offensive: Retaking city will take 2 months, says Peshmerga general

The battle to recapture Mosul from ISIS could take two months, a Peshmerga military commander told CNN on the second day of the long-awaited offensive to liberate Iraq’s second city. “My expectation is two months for the fight inside Mosul, but weather is one of the factors that can delay the process,” Sirwan Barzani, a […]

Trump is wrong about Mosul, Iraq

In recent debates and speeches Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has remarked that the United States government is using poor strategy by announcing the coalition effort to re-take Mosul from ISIS in Northern Iraq. “Why can’t they do it quietly?  Why can’t they make it a sneak attack?  And after the attack is made, inform the […]

WATCH: Battle for Mosul live feed

“The United States and the rest of the international coalition stand ready to support Iraqi security forces, peshmerga fighters and the people of Iraq in the difficult fight ahead,” Defense Secretary Ash Carter said in a separate statement. “We are confident our Iraqi partners will prevail against our common enemy and free Mosul and the […]

Where can the Kurds turn to next in an ocean of enemies?

The Kurds are on the cusp of betrayal again by U.S. policy makers. It’s not intentional against them, but international powers force the situation, leaving out the Kurds. Their primary enemy is Turkey. But, there’s almost nowhere they can turn. By the end of this they might look towards Communist China and Russia for support. […]

Why the Kurds are weary of foreign volunteers

Much of this will fall on deaf ears and many will continue to live in denial but the Kurdish people have grown incredibly weary of foreign volunteers over the course of their war with ISIS. This is due to several key factors that have cullminated into a distaste for outside help that doesn’t come in […]

Kurds want ISIL defeated, but Assad as our top ally

The Kurds are our friends. They protect American journalists and are the bastion of sanity left in the war-torn portion of Syria. It was an interesting and telling moment during the second debate when Hillary Clinton communicated some apprehension in “some circles” about increasing arms to the Kurds. The Kurds do not have a political […]

Interview with a YPG/Peshmerga foreign fighter

PJ and I were in the same Peshmerga units before he left to fight in Syria alongside the YPG. He is an exceptional warrior that embodies the spirit of the Marine Corps with a sense of humor that cannot be matched, Semper Fidelis brother.   Kurt: What’s your military background? PJ: 0351 infantry assaultman UCMC […]

9th Brigade Peshmerga smashes ISIS with artillery

On October 7th, the Peshmerga over at 9th brigade conducted a coordinated strike via artillery fire on a large gathering of ISIS members. The strike took place west of the city of Daquq, just outside of the Kirkuk province. A battle damage assessment has not been released but it’s speculated that dozens of ISIS fighters were […]

Top five preferred weapon modifications

Everyone, civilian or military, who enjoys weapons loves to trick out their gun. We all have personal preferences to how we set up our firearms to cater to our own style of shooting. Maybe it’s technique that dictates specific placement of certain mods, it could be purpose-driven reasons for particular accessories, or maybe it’s just […]

Watch: Foreign YPG fighters engage ISIS in Manbij

The YPG have been making huge strides in just the last two years but especially the recent push towards Raqqa. The war in Syria is a complex and constantly changing conflict; no one seems to really have an idea of when it will be over and who will be the top dogs when the dust […]