Iraqi police arrest pair of Islamic State extremists in Mosul

Nineveh (Iraqinews.com) – Two Islamic State militants were apprehended Wednesday in Mosul city, a police spokesperson was quoted as saying.

“Acting upon accurate intelligence reports, Nineveh police managed to arrest a pair of Islamic State militants in al-Quds district in Mosul’s eastern side,” spokesperson for the Iraqi interior ministry Maj. Gen. Saad Maan told Alghad Press.

One of them was member of the so-called Jaish al-Usrah (the army of difficulty) of Islamic State, the spokesperson added.

Iraqi authorities regularly announce the capture of Islamic State extremists in different parts in the country since the collapse of the group’s territorial influence in the country last year.

Iraq declared the collapse of Islamic State’s territorial influence last November with the recapture of Rawa, a city on Anbar’s western borders with Syria, which was the group’s last bastion in Iraq.

IS declared a self-styled “caliphate” in a third of Iraq and neighboring Syria in 2014. A government campaign, backed by a U.S.-led international coalition, was launched in 2016 to retake IS-held regions, managing to retake all havens, most notably the city of Mosul, the group’s previously proclaimed capital.

Despite the group’s crushing defeat at its main havens across Iraq, Islamic State continues to launch sporadic attacks against troops with security reports warning that the militant group still poses a threat against stability in the country.