ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) head Masoud Barzani met with a delegation of Iraqi military and security officials on Sunday, including the national security advisor Qasem al-Araji, to discuss cooperation to fight terrorism in the disputed territories.
According to a statement released by Barzani's headquarters, the meeting discussed the threat Islamic State (ISIS) poses in the disputed territories, emphasizing coordination and joint action between the Peshmerga forces and the Iraqi federal forces to fight terrorists.
The disputed territories are still a hotspot for ISIS activity. Although the group was territorially defeated in Iraq in December 2017, sleeper cells have taken shelter in a security vacuum, void of either Iraqi federal forces or Kurdish Peshmerga.
ISIS militants ambush, kidnap and extort both civilians and members of the security forces in the disputed territories, which stretch across several provinces, including Kirkuk, Nineveh, Diyala and Salahaddin.
In its weekly al-Naba propaganda newspaper released on Thursday, the group claimed it had carried out 52 operations across Iraq between April 29 and May 5, killing and injuring 102 people.
ISIS militants attacked Peshmerga fighters in Kirkuk province last week, killing three people and wounding two others.
