Fearful of attacks by Islamic State (ISIS), 24 residents of the Diyala province village of Qalla stand guard throughout the night - a practice that has become routine since October 2017, when Peshmerga forces were driven out of the region by the Iraqi Army. “Our situation is bad. We stand guard until the morning. We are ready for any task given to us,” said villager Saman Mikael. There is an 8 kilometer security void between the Diyala province towns of Khanaqin, Jalawla, and Qaratapa. The ungoverned space is a result of the collapse in communications between Iraqi and Kurdish forces. Kurdish officials say ISIS remnants have capitalized on the security gap. “It has been a long time since Daesh [Islamic State] returned to the region including Qaratapa, Jabara, Kolajo, all the way to Khanaqin in large numbers. The presence of Daesh in the region is the result of rivalries between us and the Iraqi Army leading to a security vacuum,” said Shamal Abdulrahman, a local Asayesh head. In recent weeks, the Iraqi Army has started building observation posts in the open terrain. According to Iraqi Army intelligence, ISIS has established the so-called ‘Retaliatory Group’, a force made up of 15 snipers. ISIS militants are under orders to target security forces and civilians, the army says. Peshmerga officials want the Iraqi Army to build observation posts in coordination with Kurdish forces. “The security void should be filled. The Iraqi Army had better establish watch posts in areas that maintain a security vacuum,” Peshmerga commander Brig. Gen. Kamal Mohammed said. “Daesh [Islamic State] is capitalizing on the security voids – not places where the Peshmerga are present. To fill the security voids, we have designated certain places for the Iraqi Army to go.” ISIS militants have also upped their kidnapping campaign. At the last turn of the month, militants abducted nine civilians in the Garmiyan region of Diyala, where they regularly establish fake checkpoints. The fate of the civilians remains unknown. Reporting by Halo Mohammed
