Iraqi troops arrest three Islamic State militants in Kirkuk

Kirkuk (IraqiNews.com) – Iraqi counter-terrorism forces arrested on Sunday three members of the Islamic State militant group in the oil-rich province of Kirkuk.

The Counter-Terrorism Service said in a press statement that its troops “apprehended the trio during a security operation in Tab Zawa district in Kirkuk.”

It added that arrest warrants had been issued for the thee jihadists over joining the Islamic State terrorist group.

Iraq declared the collapse of Islamic State’s territorial influence in November 2017 with the recapture of Rawa, a city on Anbar’s western borders with Syria, which was the group’s last bastion in Iraq.

IS declared a self-styled “caliphate” in a third of Iraq and neighboring Syria in 2014. A government campaign, backed by a U.S.-led international coalition and paramilitary forces, was launched in 2016 to retake IS-held regions, managing to retake all havens, most notably the city of Mosul, the group’s previously proclaimed capital.

Despite the group’s crushing defeat at its main havens across Iraq, Islamic State continues to launch sporadic attacks against troops with security reports warning that the militant group still poses a threat against stability in the country.