Mass grave of’ Yazidi women found in Iraq

During the same territorial push, ISIL advanced on Erbil, prompting the beginning of a US-led campaign of air strikes against the group, first in Iraq and later in Syria.

Across the border, the Syrian Democratic Forces coalition said it also delivered a blow to IS logistics, announcing that it had driven the jihadists out of Al-Hol, an important village on their Iraq-Syria supply route.

The Kurdish region’s security council said “peshmerga forces entered Sinjar town from all four directions to clear remaining (Isis) terrorists from the area”.

German filmmaker Carsten Stormer, embedded with the PKK fighters, reported no resistance from the ISIS fighters, saying he saw only one dead ISIS fighters in his whole time following the fighters into the city.

A mass grave believed to contain the remains of more than 70 members of Iraq’s Yazidi minority has been unearthed east of Sinjar town, following an offensive against Isis by Kurdish forces.

Yesterday, forces of the Peshmerga, the Western-backed army of the Kurdish region of Iraq, raised their flag in the town, replacing the black flag of the jihadists.

Redur Xelil, who is in the town, close to the Iraqi border, told Reuters Islamic State fighters had fled. “We will never forget what they did here, and we will have our revenge”. He described the situation in the city as still unsafe, however, and warned that it was too soon to declare victory.

“I can’t say the operation is complete because there are still threats remaining inside Sinjar”, he said. The risks include ambushes from suicide bombers, roadside bombs and booby-trapped houses, he added.

Kurdistan’s top diplomat also called on the global community to assist in cleaning the district of ISIS booby-traps and explosives and the rebuilding process to allow thousands of Sinjar citizens to return to their homes.

Sinjar lies outside Kurdish territory but is well beyond the reach of any other force fighting Isil in Iraq. It said the Syrian fighters were backed by intense U.S.-led airstrikes that killed dozens of militants.

The crisis spurred the U.S.to send assistance to the stranded Yazidis and to begin an air campaign against the militants.

“What we have not yet been able to do is completely decapitate their command and control structures”, he said in part of the interview that aired on ABC’s “Good Morning America” program.

Several mass Yazidi graves had already been discovered in the area north of Sinjar mountain, which was retaken from IS in December of 2014.

USA commanders cautioned that it may take a few time to gauge the effect of the new targeting, given the financial reserves the militant group has built up. However, additional information was not given as they claim it is hard to fully process the area as the graves are rigged with homemade bombs.