Police forces nab 9 Qaeda-linked group gunmen in Ninewa

NINEWA/IraqiNews.com: Iraqi police on Wednesday arrested nine of Qaeda-linked group gunmen in Ninewa, a security source said.   “A police force captured six gunmen from self-proclaimed Iraq’s Islamic State during two security operations in 17 Tamuz(July) district, west Mosul and Dumeez district, south-east Mosul,”Brig. Khalid Abdelsattar, spokesman for Ninewa Operation Command, told IraqiNews.com. The spokesman noted “a police force conducted an operation in Sinjar, capturing three gunmen from self-proclaimed Iraq’s Islamic State”. “The detainees were involved in kidnapping and killing operations”, he added. Self-proclaimed Iraq’s Islamic State is a mantra for a number of Sunni armed groups. Al-Qaeda network is one of its major factions. Mosul, the provincial capital of Ninewa, 400 km north Baghdad, is viewed by U.S. and Iraqi authorities as one of the last remaining al-Qaida strongholds in Iraq. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki ordered a two-phase military crackdown in the northern city in May. Ninewa officials said the gains from these operations, however, have disintegrated as militant groups re-entered the city there due to an insufficient number of Iraqi troops to maintain security following operations in May. AM(S) 1