ERBIL, Kurdistan - An Iraqi army brigadier general and a warrant officer were killed on Wednesday when a remnant explosive device exploded in Wadi Zghaitun, Kirkuk province, as troops inspected the site of airstrikes carried out a day earlier, Iraq’s Defense Ministry said.
The ministry identified the dead as Brigadier General Ahat Yasser Khudair, head of the 11th Infantry Division’s communications unit, and Warrant Officer Mutaz Shaheed Abbas.
The two were inspecting an Islamic State (ISIS) hideout targeted by Iraqi Airforce F-16 fighter jets on Tuesday in Wadi Zghitun when the device exploded, according to the ministry.
Two more soldiers were injured in the blast and evacuated for medical treatment, Rudaw has learned.
On Tuesday, Iraq’s Security Media Cell announced that the air force had carried out three strikes targeting ISIS hideouts in Wadi Zitun, based on intelligence provided by the Military Intelligence Directorate and in coordination with the air reconnaissance and surveillance center at the office of the commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
The cell said all targeted hideouts had been destroyed but did not specify whether any militants were killed.
Wadi Zghaitun lies in the disputed province of Kirkuk, where ISIS sleeper cells continue to pose a security threat despite the group’s territorial defeat in Iraq in late 2017.
The latest fatalities come two weeks after the US-led Coalition concluded its military mission in Iraq on September 30, transferring greater responsibility for counterterrorism operations to Iraqi security forces.
Speaking at the Middle East Research Institute (MERI) Forum in Erbil on Tuesday, Iraqi National Security Adviser Qasim al-Abboudi acknowledged that IS sleeper cells remained active in some parts of the country but maintained that Iraqi forces were prepared to assume responsibility following the coalition’s withdrawal.
He also acknowledged the need for improved technology to monitor militant movements in remote areas.
Kurdistan Region Interior Minister Rebar Ahmed warned at the same forum that the threat from ISIS remained and stressed the importance of continued international support, including intelligence sharing, training, and military cooperation.
The Iraqi Defense Ministry vowed to continue pursuing ISIS remnants and preventing them from threatening the country’s security.
