Security troops arrest Islamic State leader, relative in Mosul
Iraqi troops arrest a man and take him to a lock-up for interrogation
“Troops managed to arrest an Islamic State leader, along with one of his relatives who is an army conscript, while he was at the nationality department in Nineveh,” the statement added.
“The leader was recognized by the intelligence sources of the department,” it said, adding that the militant used to work at the group’s Hisbah ( vigilantism) department.
His relative, according to the statement, knew about his involvement with IS and that he facilitated smuggling him to Baghdad after liberation of Nineveh.
The two suspects were extradited to authorities in question so legal measures would be taken.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi announced, in December, full liberation of Iraqi lands, declaring end of war against IS members.
Thousands of IS militants as well as Iraqi civilians were killed since the government campaign, backed by paramilitary troops and the coalition was launched in October 2016 to fight the militant group, which declared a self-styled “caliphate” from Mosul in June 2014.
The war against IS has so far displaced at least five million people. Thousands of others fled toward neighboring countries including Syria, Turkey and other European countries, since IS emerged to proclaim its self-styled “caliphate”.