Battle for Mosul Dam

Part of the Northern Iraq offensive (August 2014)
and the American-led intervention in Iraq (2014–present)

Mosul Dam

Date	16–19 August 2014 (3 days)
Location	Mosul Dam Nineveh Province, Iraq
Result	Kurdish-Iraqi victory

Belligerents

Iraqi Kurdistan
Iraq

Airstrikes:

United States

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant

Strength

Unknown

500

Casualties and losses

Unknown

11+ killed

Iraqi Kurdistan
Iraq

Airstrikes:

The Battle for Mosul Dam was a battle between the militants of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and Kurdish Peshmerga forces supported by Iraqi troops and U.S.-led Coalition airstrikes.

Mosul Dam was captured by ISIL militants on August 7, 2014, after Kurdish forces retreated from the area, following a series of battles in the region. Some American officials described the fall of the dam as a grave concern, because it could release a 20 metres (66 ft) wave of water if it was destroyed, threatening towns and cities downstream. Following these recent developments, Kurdish forces, Iraqi forces, and the US Air Force launched a counter-offensive to retake the dam.

Also of ongoing grave concern was/is the fact that Mosul Dam (Formerly Saddam Dam) was constructed on evaporite rocks of the Miocene Fars (Fatha) Formation, which are water-soluble. As a result, the reservoir behind the dam was not filled to capacity. A continued program of pumping concrete grout into potential leaks meant that a long term interruption of remedial works could end in disaster.

On August 16, the US Air Force launched air strikes on ISIL positions near the dam, destroying some of their equipment. Kurdish forces also launched attacks against ISIL on the same day, shelling their positions near it, and opening up the possibility for a ground attack. A Kurdish commander, Major General Abdelrahman Korini, told AFP that the Peshmerga had captured the eastern side of the dam and were "still advancing". Rudaw, a Kurdish news organization, said the air strikes appeared to be the "heaviest US bombing of militant positions since the start of air strikes" against ISIL last week. At least 11 ISIL fighters were killed by the air strikes.

...
Wikipedia