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Iraq
Iraqi forces say arrested three ISIS suspects in Sulaimani, Kurdish lad killed in the crossfire
2026-09-29
[Rudaw] Iraq’s counterterrorism forces said on Sunday that they had arrested three suspected 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 Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS) members in the Kurdistan Region’s Sulaimani province, hours after federal forces reported festivities with the group in nearby Kirkuk province.

The Iraqi Counterterrorism Service (ICTS) forces said the three ISIS suspects were arrested based on judicial orders.

"Two of them had entered the province today, while the third was a resident," the statement read.

The ICTS did not clarify whether Kurdish local forces were involved in the operation. Sulaimani’s security forces had not commented on the arrests as of the time of publication.

The arrests come against the backdrop of an armed engagement between the ICTS and button men in Pirde (Altun Kupri) town in northeast of Kirkuk province earlier on Sunday.

According to the ICTS, two ISIS members wearing explosive vests were killed and a third was arrested. Rudaw has learned that two ICTS members were maimed, while a teenager was also killed.

The Kurdistan Region Security Agency said on September 13 that they had arrested two armed ISIS cells, consisting of 22 members, in Sulaimani. Security forces also seized a large quantity of heavy, medium and light weapons, hand grenades, binoculars, and ammunition.

Kurdish teen killed in Kirkuk province during clashes between security forces, ISIS suspects

[Rudaw] A Kurdish civilian teenager was killed on Sunday during clashes between Iraqi counter-terrorism forces and suspected Islamic State (ISIS) members in Prde (Altun Kupri) town in Kirkuk province. It remains unclear who shot him.

The Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service (ICTS) said its forces carried out an operation in Prde targeting three ISIS suspects, killing two and arresting a third.

A young Kurdish civilian, Murad Zana, was also shot dead during the clashes. It remains unclear who fired the shot that killed the teenager.

The ICTS did not mention Zana’s death in its statement about the operation, but Saad Maan, head of Iraq’s Security Media Cell, confirmed to Rudaw that a civilian was killed during the clashes.

The operation unfolded after ICTS forces, acting on prior intelligence, tracked the suspected militants to an area near a household supplies warehouse in central Prde.

According to information obtained by Rudaw, the forces had initially planned to target the suspects in an unpopulated area. However, the militants apparently realized they were being monitored and opened fire, prompting the forces to return fire.

Two ICTS members were injured in the fighting, according to Maan.

Witnesses said some of the suspected militants took cover inside the warehouse.

“It happened in the late afternoon. Those ISIS members entered [the warehouse] and fought with the army. They later blew themselves up,” Hakim Rahman, the brother of the warehouse owner, told Rudaw’s Hardi Mohammed.

Rawand Hakim, the warehouse owner’s nephew, said there were signs of an explosion inside the building.

“It appears that he may have blown himself up inside because I saw pieces of flesh, hair and many things inside [the warehouse],” he said.

The covert nature of the operation meant that other security agencies and local authorities were not informed in advance, according to officials.

Abdulmutalib Najmaddin, mayor of Prde subdistrict, said he and other local authorities had no prior knowledge of the operation.

“Those forces entered without informing anyone. Although I am the head of the administrative unit and head of the security committee of this subdistrict [I was not informed in advance]. No security or governmental institution was informed. They closed the road and started shooting inside the warehouse, and one of our young men was martyred,” Najmaddin told Rudaw.

Zana’s family expressed anger over the conduct of the operation after his body was retrieved from the warehouse.

“Does it make sense to bring all those forces and storm the town, firing DShK heavy machine guns at the warehouse? What does a child as young as 14 know about any of this?” Yawar Anwar, Zana's uncle, said.
Related:
Sulaimani province: 2026-09-19 10 Kurdish migrants held hostage by Libya’s armed groups: Iraqi MP
Sulaimani province: 2026-09-16 Attack drone targets Kurdish opposition base in Erbil ahead of scheduled Iran nationwide protests
Sulaimani province: 2026-09-08 Iranian Kurdish party says Sulaimani base attacked with drones
Related:
Kirkuk province: 2026-08-19 American Surveillance balloon relaunches over Erbil
Kirkuk province: 2026-08-12 IED attack in Kirkuk leaves three Iraqi soldiers wounded
Kirkuk province: 2026-08-11 Iraqi airstrikes destroy eight ISIS hideouts in Kirkuk
Related:
Pirde: 2026-02-10 Kurdish armed group preparing to expel Iranian forces from Kurdish areas
Pirde: 2023-04-18 Unidentified drone crashes near Peshmerga base in Erbil’s Qushtapa
Pirde: 2022-06-10 Kurdish security forces say drone in Erbil launched by militia group
Related:
Altun Kupri: 2026-09-11 Three Peshmerga detained in Kirkuk over death of PMF member: Source
Altun Kupri: 2026-04-27 ISIS-linked kidnappings target rural communities near Kirkuk
Altun Kupri: 2025-11-29 Erbil family says son joined Russian army
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