Iraq: Kurdish Forces Launch Offensive Against ISIL

"Democracy Now!" airs weekdays at 9 a.m. PT on KCET.

Up to 7,500 Kurdish peshmerga forces backed by U.S.-led warplanes have launched an offensive against the self-proclaimed Islamic State in northern Iraq. The offensive seeks to retake Mount Sinjar and surrounding areas from ISIL. Last year, ISIL trapped tens of thousands of Yazidi religious minorities on Mount Sinjar, prompting President Obama to authorize airstrikes to prevent what he called a "potential act of genocide." Ultimately, hundreds of thousands of Yazidis fled, and many were raped, murdered or enslaved by ISIL. The offensive also seeks to sever a key ISIL supply route between Syria and the ISIL-held Iraqi city of Mosul.