Tal Afar
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Tal Afar (also Talafar) in Arabic تل عفر (also تلعفر) is a city in northern Iraq, about 30 miles west of Mosul. Its population is about 170,000 and consists mostly of Kurds and Turkmen Muslims.
After the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, insurgents used Tal Afar as a staging point for attacks. In September 2004, American forces defeated the insurgents and left about 500 troops in the city. However, Iraqi authorities soon lost control of the city, and insurgents began taking over again. A military operation in June 2005 did not quell the violence; the U.S. launched another offensive in the city in September 2005.
Tal Afar has also been the scene of sectarian violence between Shiite and Sunni Muslims. In May 2005, clashes broke out between the two groups.
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