KIRKUK, Kurdistan Region – Peshmerga forces backed by fierce oalition airstrikes pushed back the Islamic State (ISIS) Monday following an overnight assault by the militants in the Bashik Mountains southeast of Mosul. ISIS also is reportedly reorganizing forces in Hawija, south of the oil-rich city of Kirkuk. “Late last night, Daesh militants (ISIS) attacked Peshmerga bases in the Bashik Mountains but they were pushed back by our forces,” Peshmerga commander Qadir Badeli told Rudaw. “The collation airstrikes were intensely shelling ISIS fighters, forcing them to back away and leaving their weapons behind,” he added. Meanwhile, there were reports Monday that ISIS is reorganizing forces in the city of Hawija, amid unconfirmed reports of a possible Peshmerga offensive on the city. Hawija is 55 kilometers southwest of Kirkuk, and ISIS militants have been fleeing there from Tikrit, where the Iraqi Army has been advancing against the militants in a joint offensive with Iranian-backed Shiite militias for days.
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