The regional Peshmerga commander, Lieutenant Suphan Bakuriani, told The Anadolu Agency that ISIL attacked the Sultan Abdullah region of Guver village Saturday night. The village is located around 45 kilometers from Erbil, northern Iraq.
He said that Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces responded immediately, and attacked ISIL positions.
“27 ISIL militants were killed in the clashes,” Bakuriani said.
Guver village is seen as being strategic as it is located near Erbil, the capital of the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government in northern Iraq. The fall of Guver and Makhmur would make it easier for ISIL to attack Erbil.
Iraqi Troops Break ISIL Siege in Al-Baghdadi
Government forces, backed by local tribal fighters, broke the siege in al-Baghdadi in the Western province of Anbar a security official said, dalje.com reported.
"The forces were able to push the terrorist organization at least 1 kilometer away from the compound," the official said on the condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to talk to the media.The siege had begun last week.
Sabah Karhut, the head of Anbar's local council, said Iraqi troops began a major offensive Saturday to dislodge the terrorists from al-Baghdadi, located about 5 kilometers from the strategic Ain al-Asad airbase.
"Heavy losses have been inflicted on Daesh in the area," Karhut told the Iraqi broadcaster Alsumaria