SULAIMANI (ESTA) — At least 12 Islamic State terrorists (ISIS) were detained by the Iraqi security forces in the disputed territories amid terrorist eradication operations, a statement Friday said.
The Iraqi national security service in a statement announced that 12 terrorists of an ISIS “sleeper cell” were detained in Kirkuk and Nineveh provinces.
After acquiring intelligence information the Iraqi forces were able to locate the terrorists who were previously wanted by the court charged by the terror law, the statement said.
Islamic State controlled roughly a third of Iraq between 2014 and 2017.
However, the Iraqi forces and Kurdish troops backed by U.S.-led Coalition forces as well as Iran-backed Shia militias defeated the militant group in 2017.
While Islamic State was driven out of most of the territory, many of the remnants of ISIS militants are operating in the disputed territories between the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the Federal Government.
Kirkuk and Nineveh provinces are part of the disputed territories.
The areas created a security vacuum, exploited by terrorists to pursue their own harmful actions to destabilize the country’s security, still possessing real threats to the locals.
