Iraq arrests 3 ISIS suspects in three provinces
06-07-2026
[Rudaw] The Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (ICTS) said it arrested three Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allaharound with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not
reallyMoslems....
(ISIS) suspects, including a senior operative responsible for rigging Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), amid ongoing operations to eliminate the group's presence in the country. Kurdish forces were also involved in the operations.
"The heroic forces successfully apprehended one of the most dangerous terrorist elements, known as the head of IEDs of Salahaddin province," the ICTS published on their website on Saturday, noting that the suspect was arrested in Sulaimani province in cooperation with the security forces (Asayish).
This comes as air and ground strikes by Iraqi security forces on Saturday targeted ISIS hideouts in Kirkuk province following five days of intelligence tracking by the Iraqi National Intelligence Service and ICTS, resulting in the death of a senior ISIS member.
The ICTS also arrested another two ISIS suspects in Anbar and djinn-infested Mosul
... the home of a particularly ferocious and hairy djinn...
provinces, and searched hideouts in Kirkuk province’s Wadi Zaghitun, according to the Saturday statement. The separate operation included "searching of a cluster of mud-brick villages and hideouts belonging to the remnants of the terrorist ISIS."
Iraqi officer killed in clashes with ISIS
05-07-2026
[Rudaw] An Iraqi military officer was killed while clashing with Islamic State (ISIS) militants in Kirkuk province on Sunday, counter-terrorism forces announced, as an operation to clear the province of the group’s sleeper cells entered its second day.
“It is with profound sorrow and grief that we announce to our honorable Iraqi people the martyrdom of the heroic fighter, First Lieutenant Hassan Khudhair Zughair… during clashes with ISIS terrorist gangs in Kirkuk province,” the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (ICTS) said in a statement.
Footage obtained by Rudaw showed Iraqi fighter jets and helicopters hovering over the skies of Kirkuk on Sunday as an operation by the army and security forces to clear the area of ISIS entered its second day. One ISIS suspect was killed on the first day of the campaign.
The ICTS vowed to continue operations against ISIS remnants, stating its forces will spare no effort to “purge” the country from the “clutches of these terrorist gangs.”
The Security Media Cell announced on Saturday that Iraqi F-16 fighter jets, backed by the US-led Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, “carried out successful and precise airstrikes” against ISIS positions in the Dibis district of northern Kirkuk province, targeting what it described as “dens and hideouts of terrorist gangs” used by militants in areas disputed between Erbil and Baghdad.
ISIS seized large swathes of territory in northern and western Iraq in 2014 before being defeated in 2017 after three years of intense fighting. Despite its defeat, the group continues to pose a security threat, particularly in disputed areas between Erbil and Baghdad, spanning the provinces of Diyala, Kirkuk, Nineveh, and Salahaddin.
Farmer goes missing near Kirkuk, ISIS involvement suspected
05-07-2026
[Rudaw] A Kurdish farmer in Kirkuk province has been missing since Friday. Some family members believe he was kidnapped by Islamic State (ISIS) sleeper cells, though police have not confirmed the claim.
Hardi Zainal, 37, went to water his cornfield but never returned, and his phone was turned off. Residents of the village have joined security forces in searching for him.
“My last call with him was at 7 pm,” Karwan Hadi, Zainal’s cousin, told Rudaw’s Hardi Mohammed on Saturday.
“He said he would just switch water sets in the rows and return. He had no issues, but he went missing between 7:30-8:00 pm,” Hadi added.
Zainal’s car was found near his cornfield the following day, and several footprints were discovered in and around the field. His family believes the footprints belong to ISIS militants, whom they suspect are behind his disappearance.
Ramazan Mohammed, another cousin, said Zainal disappeared at 7:30 pm.
“They [ISIS] took him. Their footprints are visible,” he said.
Police told Rudaw on Saturday that they have not found any link between Zainal's disappearance and ISIS.
As locals continued searching for the missing farmer, Iraqi security forces killed a prominent ISIS figure in the area in a sniper operation on Saturday. The army also bombarded several suspected ISIS hideouts in the province over the weekend..
Between August 2024 and August 2025, the conflict monitor ACLED recorded 82 terrorist operations carried out by the group in Kirkuk province, including 38 explosions and 16 “incidents of violence against civilians.”
Iraqi F-16s strike ISIS hideouts in Kirkuk
04-07-2026
[Rudaw] Iraqi security forces on Saturday carried out a series of air and ground operations in Kirkuk province, targeting hideouts and strongholds of the Islamic State (ISIS) militants, while killing a senior member of the group in a separate operation in the area, according to security sources and officials.
The Security Media Cell announced in a statement that Iraqi F-16 fighter jets, backed by the US-led Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, “carried out successful and precise airstrikes” against ISIS positions in the Dibis district of northern Kirkuk province, targeting what it described as “dens and hideouts of terrorist gangs” used by the militants in the disputed areas between the Kurdistan Region and Iraq.
The statement added that the operation was launched following five days of continuous intelligence tracking and close coordination between the Joint Operations Command targeting unit, the Iraqi National Intelligence Service (INIS), and the Counter-Terrorism Service.
Footage obtained by Rudaw shows warplanes striking two ISIS hideouts in six separate air raids across Kirkuk province on Saturday.