Iraqi troops arrest six Islamic State militants in Kirkuk

Kirkuk (IraqiNews.com) – Iraqi security forces arrested on Wednesday six members of the Islamic State militant group in the oil-rich province of Kirkuk, the security media center said.

“Iraqi troops carried out a successful security operation based on accurate intelligence reports to target IS terrorists in Kirkuk province,” Baghdad Today news website quoted the center as saying in a statement.

According to the statement, the militants were plotting to “carry out terrorist attacks with the aim of undermining the security situation in Kirkuk,” adding that the arrests were made after more than 20 days of close surveillance of the terrorists.

Islamic State continues to launch sporadic attacks across Iraq against troops. Security reports indicate that the militant group still poses a threat against stability in the country.

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.