Baghdad, Dec 23 (IANS): Iraqi Kurdish forces who recently liberated Sinjar from the Islamic State (IS) militants, continued its mop-up operations against radical militant group in the flashpoint northwestern Iraqi town.

Operations are under way in the town, with Peshmerga forces clearing Sinjar from IS militants and the landmines the IS had left behind.

“Just like regions IS retreated (from) previously, Sinjar was found full of landmines,” Press TV quoted Ali Hussein, a Peshmerga official, as saying.

Kurdish forces are struggling to cut off “IS routes into Mosul and Syria through Sinjar to ensure that counter-attacks cannot be launched against us”, he added.

Breaking Sinjar’s siege has given a huge strategic victory to both the Iraqi Kurds and the central government in Baghdad, as the Peshmerga forces could cut the highway from Syria to the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, a vital supply line for IS.

Peshmerga fighters managed to break the siege of Mount Sinjar in northwestern Iraq Dec 18, and delivered aid to the Yazidi Kurds who had been stranded in the area for months.

Peshmerga forces regained control of the Tal Afar Mountain in Iraq’s northwestern Nineveh province from the IS terrorists the following day.

At least seven villages and the strategic town of Zumar have reportedly been liberated from IS as part of a major offensive to open a path from the Kurdistan region to Mount Sinjar.

The two-day operation by the Kurdish fighters, which involved 8,000 troops, was the largest so far against the IS.

The IS terrorists, who control some parts of Syria and Iraq, have been accused of crimes against humanity.