“Diyala Operation Command began implementing the second phase of the Hamrin mountain range inspection,” the Iraqi defense ministry said on Facebook. According to the statement, Major General Raad Mahmoud supervised the operation.
A statement from Iraqi Security Media Cell published on Facebook said that 18 ISIS hideouts were destroyed, 32 explosive devices were handled, 11 villages and orchards were cleared and 10 rockets, in addition to other equipment and explosives, were seized.
State media reported that the operation was carried out by the Iraqi army, police, Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF, or Hashd al-Shaabi) with the support of air forces, army aviation and the coalition.
PMF conducted a large security operation on five fronts in the Hamrin mountain range earlier this month, PMF commander for Diyala operations Talib al-Moussawi told state media.
ISIS seized control of swaths of Iraq in 2014. The group was declared territorially defeated in 2017, but it continues to carry out bombings, hit-and-run attacks and abductions across several provinces. ISIS remnants are particularly active in parts of northern Iraq that are disputed by Erbil and Baghdad.
Diyala, Kirkuk and Salahaddin are among the territories disputed by the Iraqi and Kurdish governments. Security forces frequently carry out operations against ISIS in these areas, but a lack of coordination between Iraqi and Kurdish forces leaves troops vulnerable to attack.
In July, the Peshmerga ministry said they were working with their Iraqi counterparts on the formation of two joint brigades to counter ISIS remnants in these disputed areas.
Last month, the deputy Peshmerga minister said the brigade will be formed after Iraq’s October 10 election.
