SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Iraqi and Peshmerga officials on Saturday agreed to coordinate in confronting Islamic State (ISIS) militants in the disputed territories, a senior Kurdish official said.
A delegation from the ministry of Peshmerga visited Baghdad on Saturday to hold talks with Iraqi officials at the joint operations command in the Iraqi capital.
Jabar Yawar, Secretary General of the Peshmerga Ministry, said both sides had agreed to coordinate in any joint works against ISIS militants in the disputed areas.
“The coordination and works will begin from tomorrow [Sunday], either through joint operations or joint detachments for areas where ISIS militants are moving,” he told Esta Media Network.
Yawar further said the Iraqi and Kurdish officials discussed four frontlines that started from Khanaqin to Kirkuk.
The officials will hold another meeting next week to discuss the other frontlines so as to maintain coordination between the Peshmerga forces and the Iraqi military to end ISIS remnants.
Deputy commander of the joint operations command Lit. Gen. Abdulamir al-Shammari said Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi had directed to provide “all support” for the Peshmerga forces and that they agreed to supply the Kurdish forces with “a set of requirements that they need, including armed reconnaissance and airstrikes”.
“The Peshmerga delegation’s visit was successful,” Shammari said, according to state news agency INA.
The meeting came after ISIS militants attacked a village and Peshmerga forces in Makhmour and Garmian administration last week.
Three civilians and 10 members of the Kurdish forces were killed in ISIS attacks in the foothills of Qarachogh mountain near Makhmour.
Makhmour, a hotbed for ISIS activity that sees regular attacks against the Kurdish forces, Iraqi forces and often civilians, is a mountainous area about 70 km (45 miles) southeast of Mosul and 60 km (40 miles) southwest of Erbil.
Eight other members of the Peshmerga forces were killed in the attacks in Kifri and Kulajo in Garmian administration, according to authorities.
Kurdish officials and analysts have long blamed a lack of coordination along a stretch of territory claimed by both Baghdad and Erbil for ISIS’ continued ability to wage deadly attacks.
The Peshmerga ministry said the militants continued to use a security gap between the Iraqi and Kurdish forces to attack the Peshmerga.
Islamic State controlled roughly a third of Iraq between 2014 and 2017, including the remote Makhmour region but also major cities including Mosul.
Iraqi forces, Kurdish troops and Iran-backed Shia militias defeated the militant group in 2017, but its members still roam areas of northern Iraq and northeastern Syria.
