Two IS terrorists involved in targeting Iraqi civilians arrested in Kirkuk
Iraqi security forces arrest a suspected fighter with the Islamic State group during a military operation.
Kirkuk (IraqiNews.com) – Iraqi police forces have arrested two Islamic State militants in Kirkuk as security campaigns continue nationwide in pursuit of the terrorist group’s dormant cells.
“Troops of the federal police have arrested two IS terrorists involved in targeting civilians and security forces in Kirkuk province,” Iraqi website Alghad Press quoted spokesman for the Interior Ministry Maj. Gen. Saad Maan as saying on Sunday.
“One of them faces terror-related charges, while the other was a member of the so-called Kirkuk State,” the spokesman added.
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 and paramilitary forces, 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.
A total of 75 Iraqi civilians were killed, while 179 others were injured due to acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in Iraq in September, according to casualty figures by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI).