ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Iraqi Joint Operations Command (JOC) announced on Sunday that its forces carried out two coordinated airstrikes targeting an Islamic State (ISIS) hideout deep in the Anbar desert, in an operation based on intelligence tracking and field surveillance.
According to a statement issued by the command, the strikes were conducted in the afternoon against what it described as “a safehouse belonging to terrorist ISIS gangs in remote areas deep within the Anbar desert.”
The JOC said the operation was executed “through a distinguished operation and field follow-up by the military intelligence directorate, and under the optimal planning and supervision of the targeting cell at the Joint Operations Command.”
“We pledge to our proud people that our heroic security forces, in all their branches and formations, will continue to pursue the remaining remnants of the terrorist ISIS gangs—pounding their strongholds and cleansing the land of the prophets and saints of their filth,” read the statement
ISIS seized large parts of Iraq in 2014 before its territorial defeat in 2017, though its remnants continue to operate through sporadic attacks, ambushes, and kidnappings in several provinces.
Areas in northern Iraq, particularly parts of Kirkuk, Diyala, and Salahaddin, remain active zones for the group.
The latest strikes come a week after Iraqi forces carried out similar operations in Diyala province targeting an ISIS leader, killing two militants following months of intelligence tracking.
The operation was part of ongoing efforts to dismantle remaining ISIS networks across the country.
The June campaign against ISIS also coincides with Iraq’s annual commemoration of the Speicher massacre, in which more than 1,700 military cadets were executed by ISIS in 2014.
