Rudaw recently published an interview with an American volunteer in the Kurdish army, called the Peshmerga, who spoke highly of the Kurds’ heart and will to fight.
American Volunteers Against ISIS
In the interview, Rudaw asked “Kurt” what his plans on staying in Kurdistan were. Kurt replied, “I actually bought a round-trip ticket for a period of six months to go back to the States, but once I got here and saw how organized ISIS is and how dangerous they actually can be… I don’t know. I might stay until they are pushed out of Kurdistan.”
All the American volunteers who were interviewed previously fought with the American military, and are trained war fighters. Their volunteer service was welcomed by Peshmerga commanders who said that the Americans were not afraid to fight on the front lines, and were having an impact on the effort against the so-called Islamic State.
Kurdish Peshmerga and the United States
The Peshmerga are the armed forces of Iraqi Kurdistan. Many Peshmerga divisions are under control of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), and are primarily concentrated on fighting and rolling back ISIS.
The Kurdish Peshmerga is fighting ISIS with the help of United States-led coalition airstrikes in Iraq. This cooperation between the US and Kurdistan was recently highlighted in a visit between KRG President Masoud Barzani and U.S. President Barack Obama.
[Visit Rudaw to read more and to watch the interview with the American volunteers.]
