VIDEO: Iraqi People Celebrate Liberation from ISIS by Kurdish Peshmerga Forces

Thu Oct 27, 2016 21:50:47

Residents of the Iraqi village of Fadiliya clapped with joy as they welcomed the liberating Kurdish Peshmerga forces on Thursday, Al-Alam News Network reports.

It took the soldiers 10 days to gain the upper hand in Fadiliya, home to 1,000 people still trapped there, surrounded by improvised explosive devices (IEDs), just four kilometers (2.5 miles) north of Mosul.

A commander with the Peshmerga said none of his fighters were harmed when they entered the village.

Iraqi and Kurdish forces have cleared more than 30 villages like Fadiliya since the start of the offensive against Islamic State (ISIS / Daesh / ISIL) in their main Iraqi stronghold of Mosul.

It’s expected to be the biggest battle since a US-led invasion toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003.

Clearing towns and villages of the ultra-hardline militants is proving to be a slow and highly risky mission which suggests securing Mosul - with a population of 1.5 million - could take months in the event of victory.

When Kurdish fighters first stepped into Fadiliya, they were met with a barrage of suicide bombers who kept screaming Allahhu Akbar (God is Greatest) as they sped closer and closer in cars, SUVs, motorcycles and Humvees stolen from the Iraqi army.

The Kurds had to move cautiously through the village, located four km north of Mosul.

Like others it is rigged with explosives, forcing a slow advance.

They were finally able to recapture the village on Thursday (October 27). Residents of the village took to the streets to celebrate the arrival of the forces.

S/SH 11

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