US continues air strikes on Islamic State

WASHINGTON (AA) – The U.S. continued its air campaign against Islamic State militants in northern Iraq on Tuesday. At roughly 11:55 a.m. GMT, a U.S. drone struck and destroyed an Islamic State mortar position that was firing on Kurdish forces north of Sinjar, according to U.S. Central Command. The Kurdish forces were defending Ezidi civilians who were attempting to escape Mount Sinjar where they sought refuge from insurgents. Armed groups linked to the Islamic State, formerly known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or ISIL, captured Iraq's Sinjar and Rabia in the Nineveh province last week after fierce clashes, forcing thousands of Iraqis including Turkmen, Arabs and Ezidis to flee. The U.S. has been hitting IS targets since U.S. President Barack Obama authorized the military to carry out airstrikes last week in support of U.S. personnel in the northern Iraqi city of Erbil, and forces in Iraq.
By Michael Hernandez