Battle of Altun Kupri (2017)

The Battle of Altun Kupri, or Battle of Pirdê (Arabic: معركة ألتون كوبري; Kurdish: شەڕی پردێ, romanized: Şerî Pirdê) was a military confrontation between the KDP Peshmerga, PAK and Kurdish locals on one side, and the Iraqi Army, Quds Force, Popular Mobilization Forces (PMU), and other Shiite militias on the other, during the 2017 Iraqi–Kurdish conflict. The defense of Altun Kupri (Pirdê) was seen as a major victory by the Peshmerga, which stopped the Iraqi advance northwards. It was the first major military confrontation between both sides since the Battle of Kirkuk (2017).^{[12][13][14][15]}

The battle was preceded by the five-day-long Battle of Kirkuk (2017), which was marked by disorganization among Kurdish forces, largely caused by accusations of betrayal, ultimately forcing them to retreat towards the direction of Altun Kupri.

On 16 October 2017, a group of Peshmerga stationed in Dibis led by Jamal Kirkuki withdrew across the Little Zab river to take up defensive positions on the right bank of the river near Altun Kupri. Another group of Kirkuki's forces alongside PAK Peshmerga led by Hussein Yazdanpanah moved over the Qeredax mountains to the village of Kitka, which was located on the southern entrance of Altun Kupri.^[16]

On 19 October 2017, the first clashes occurred on the southern entrance of Altun Kupri near the Kurdish positions in Kitka. This led to the destruction of a PMU Humvee.^[16]

The battle began at 7:00 a.m. on 20 October 2017, when Iraqi forces began to rain artillery (likely M198), tank and mortar fire on Kurdish units near Altun Kupri and its surroundings, with the help of IRGC artillery experts.^[17] An apparent 81-millimeter mortar exploded not far from a group of Kurdish generals standing outside a command post and another one hit a vehicle of the Zerevani.^[18][19] The artillery fire also hit civilian homes.^[11] Kurdish support units based on the outskirts of the Erbil governorate responded with their own, much weaker artillery.^[11][20]

The Iraqi attack commenced from 3 axes. From the west near the town of Dibis, from the east near the village of Qarabag, and Kitka, southern Altun Kupri.^[19][21] Kurdish forces near Kitka, Altun Kupri and other areas withdrew under heavy fire along the Erbil-Kirkuk Road through Altun Kupri until they reached the checkpoint demarking the Erbil and Kirkuk governorates.^[16][22][23] The checkpoint, which was known as the 'last line' and served as a FOB, had berms and was manned by Peshmerga soldiers, locals and a few armored vehicles before the retreating forces arrived by 9:00 a.m.. Behind and next to the checkpoint, were the hills of the Qeredax mountain range which formed a unique strategic “cauldron”, which the Kurdish forces utilized by establishing new positions on them.^{[16][21][24][25][26]}

At 10:00 a.m., after hours of artillery bombardment against the Peshmerga, the first Iraqi units began advancing on the town.^[27] Iraqi forces pushed through Altun Kupri nearly unhindered until they reached the town’s bridge which spans across the Little Zab. When Iraqi Humvee’s crossed, a massive explosion erupted, tearing two vehicles into the river. The bridge was sabotaged by sappers during the earlier retreat of the Peshmerga forces.^[23] The other side of the bridge was still intact, as well as a smaller bridge in the town’s south, which connects a river island to the Kurdish side. Iraqi forces continued their push across the river, where they were met by heavy fire from the Peshmerga ‘cauldron’, which now consisted of a few hundred KDP and PAK Peshmerga, and Zerevani forces. Among light weapons the Kurds used .50-caliber machine guns, truck mounted field guns, and anti-tank weapons like the German MILAN, Panzerfaust 3, and the Chinese HJ-8.^{[28][29][30][26][31][32]} Ercuman Turkmen, a PMU commander, said from inside the town his forces were being targeted by sniper fire.^[33]

By 11:00 a.m. Iraqi forces came as close as 700m to the Kurdish positions. An Iraqi M1 Abrams tank advancing along the smaller Prde Street, adjacent to the Erbil-Kirkuk Road, came particularly close and was later destroyed, an event captured on film by a Rudaw reporter.^{[21][32][34][35]}

After the destruction of the tank, the Shia militias moved back and started firing more artillery and mortars.^[36] A few Peshmerga of the PAK, led by Hussein Yazdanpanah, used the opportunity and left the checkpoint to establish new positions at a compound, which was about 300m closer to the Iraqis. Footage shows Yazdanpanah himself, shooting an RPG towards the enemy.^[37][38]

By mid-day a significant amount of Peshmerga reinforcements, including armored vehicles and CTG special forces, arrived from Qushtapa and other areas.^[11][21][36]

At 14:00 p.m. Iraqi forces including the Shia militias started another push towards the Kurdish positions. The first vehicle of the column, which was a Humvee, was hit by an anti-tank missile, which led the rest to pull back. After that the Iraqis made no further attempts to cross into the Kurdish areas.^[36]

Lower intensity fighting continued for the next days as both sides continued to exchange artillery fire. Overall the battle was seen as a major victory for the Peshmerga as they were able to hold the checkpoint and deny Iraqi forces and their Shia militias, under the guidance of Iranian generals like Qasem Soleimani, access to the Erbil governorate.^[16]

The Peshmerga's attempt to destroy the bridge, spanning across the Little Zab, has left it damaged and unusable until it was repaired in 2020, when the Erbil and Baghdad governments eventually agreed to jointly build a steel bridge.^{[39][40][41][42]}

The Battle of Pirdê and its outcome remain in the memory of Kurds to this day, especially as many felt betrayed by the US and the International Coalition, who at the time fought by the side of Kurdish forces against ISIS. That sense of betrayal was deepened by the fact that the Kurds had to face an Iranian-backed enemy armed with superior US-made weaponry — yet still emerged victorious. Therefore Kurdish media nicknamed it "The Epic Battle of Pirdê " and also called it "another proud chapter in Kurdistan's liberation struggle".^[24][43][44]

• 2017 Kurdistan Region independence referendum