Official lauds Iraqi-Kurdish forces’ cooperation in Kirkuk

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region -  The spokesperson for an elite group of Iraqi forces praised the growing synergy with the security forces in the Kurdistan Region, especially when combating the Islamic State’s (ISIS) escalating activities in Kirkuk.

“[The Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS)] has a lot of coordination with [our] brothers in the Kurdistan Region…” CTS spokesperson Sabah al-Numan told Rudaw’s Sangar Abdulrahman on Tuesday.

Numan emphasized that the collaboration yields positive outcomes for the security of Iraq and the Kurdistan Region.

The spokesperson detailed that recent joint efforts have led to the arrest of five individuals accused of terrorism, while the Kurdistan’s Region security forces have handed over 18 additional suspects to federal authorities.

Last month, there were multiple raids and airstrikes against ISIS across the country involving the Iraqi security forces, the US-led international anti-ISIS coalition, Kurdish Peshmerga, and the Kurdistan Region’s security forces (Asayish).

Numan commented on the recent rise in ISIS activities around Kirkuk.

“The organization [ISIS] tries to remain hidden and avoid security forces,” Numan said, adding that the militants are taking refuge in mountainous and rural areas away from the city.

Despite the increase in activity, Numan described ISIS as being in its “weakest state,” suffering from a lack of logistical, financial, and popular support, with no central leadership or unified decision-making.

ISIS seized large territories in Iraq in 2014 but was declared territorially defeated in the country in 2017 after Kurdish Peshmerga and Iraqi forces, backed by the US-led coalition, ousted the jihadists.

However, the group continues to carry out bombings, hit-and-run attacks, and kidnappings in several Iraqi provinces, particularly in the disputed areas across Kirkuk, Salahaddin, Nineveh, and Diyala provinces.

Since 2014, thousands of individuals have been detained across Iraq for suspected links to terrorist organizations, including ISIS, and hundreds have been executed.