
Iraqi forces pose with items seized during a raid on an ISIS hideout near Mount Qarachogh on August 17, 2021. Photo: handout/Security Media Cell
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — In a meeting with military commanders on Tuesday to discuss the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan, Iraq’s defence minister emphasized the need for well-trained, disciplined forces to combat a surging Islamic State group (ISIS). Iraqi forces have carried out multiple operations against ISIS in the past few days.
“Because of the regional situation and the recent developments in Afghanistan as well as the noticeable significant increase in ISIS activity, I decided to convene with the military commanders,” Iraqi Minister of Defense Jouma Anad said.
In their meeting, they emphasized Iraq’s forces need to be “highly prepared to fight, focused on discipline and military training, and to take caution,” he said following the meeting.
“Trained sectors have fewer losses than the untrained,” he added.
Afghan troops put up little to no resistance as the Taliban took control of the country over the past week, following the withdrawal of United States forces. Comparisons have been drawn with Iraq in 2014 when Iraqi forces melted away as ISIS seized control of much of the country’s north and west.
US forces, which returned to Iraq as part of the global coalition against ISIS, are formally shifting to an advisory and training role. US President Joe Biden, meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi last month, said that America’s combat mission in Iraq will be over by the end of the year.
Ahead of traveling to Washington, Kadhimi said Iraq can fight ISIS itself, but still needs some US support. "The Iraqi army still needs their forces for training. We need their support to our air force, and we need their intelligence support in the fight against ISIS," he said in an interview with the Saudi owned al-Hadath TV.
ISIS was declared territorially defeated in Iraq in 2017, but the group remains a security threat carrying out bombings, hit-and-run attacks, and abductions. Iraq’s forces are carrying out operations against ISIS on multiple fronts.
Iraqi forces raided an ISIS hideout near Mosul, seizing explosives and other materials, the military’s Security Media Cell stated on Tuesday. The hideout was later blown up, it added.
The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) launched a new operation, called Ashura al-Karama (Dignity of Ashura), to clear out the group’s remnants in Diyala, according to state media. Ashura is a holy day for Shiite Muslims who traditionally make a pilgrimage to Iraq’s Karbala, the final resting place of Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Mohammed, who was killed there in 680 AD. Last week, the PMF discovered a stash of explosives intended for attacks on Ashura pilgrims.
Iraqi forces on Saturday morning launched a large-scale security operation to clear out ISIS remnants in northern Baghdad. A number of suspects were arrested and a suspected ISIS leader was killed in a raid on his home on Sunday.
Seven other ISIS militants were arrested in Nineveh province while two others were killed in Kirkuk.
The operations follow numerous ISIS attacks on the country's electricity grid, contributing to a blackout last month that left millions across central and southern Iraq without power.
In its propaganda magazine, ISIS claims to have carried out 134 attacks on electricity towers between June 6 and August 10. Its claimed activities have not decreased, despite Iraq’s security efforts, as the group said it carried out 33 attacks on power pylons in the last week alone.
ISIS is taking advantage of a security vacuum between federal Iraqi forces and the Kurdish Peshmerga along the border of the Kurdistan Region and the rest of Iraq. The two sides recently opened joint operation centres to increase cooperation in these areas and are in talks to form joint brigades.
The US-led coalition “has always supported the military integration & security cooperation between our ISF [Iraqi Security Forces] & Peshmerga," tweeted spokesperson Colonel Wayne Marotto on Tuesday.
He said this support "is a key step for achieving long-term stability. Together, we remain committed to deny Daesh [ISIS] remnants the means & opportunities to resurge."
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