Iraq Crisis: Kurdish Troops Launch Attack on Isis on Three Fronts

Kurdish troops have launched three separate offensives on Isis (now known as the Islamic State) positions in Northern Iraq, according to senior military officers.

The attacks took place before dawn north of Iraq's second city Mosul, south of oil town Kirkuk and on a town situated on the Syrian border.

A Kurdish source confirmed that troops had entered the town of Rabia after capturing the villages of As-Saudiyah and Mahmudiyah.

"Ground troops are now fighting in the centre of Rabia," the senior source in the Kurdish Peshmerga, speaking on condition of anonymity, said.

He revealed that Peshmerga forces, with artillery and air support, had launched an attack on Zumar, a city 40 miles northwest of Mosul and near Iraq's largest reservoir, which IS captured in June following a large-scale offensive.

To the south of Kirkuk, Kurdish forces recaptured villages in close proximity to the town of Daquq, which has also been under the control of IS since June, and were now attempting to reclaim the village of Al-Wahda.

"They have liberated the villages of Saad and Khaled. The Peshmerga have taken full control of the area, following fierce fighting," Kurdish General Westa Rasul said.

The Kurdish attacks come after reports that IS militants are now less than 10km (6.3 miles) from Baghdad as clashes with the Iraqi army continue.

Fighting with the terror group is taking place on the outskirts of the Iraqi capital with Iraqi forces attempting to halt their advance on the city.