Iraqi forces arrest six, seize rockets in Kirkuk

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraqi forces in Kirkuk on Tuesday arrested six people, seized a cache of explosives and rockets, and uncovered a terrorist den.

“The Joint Operations Command in Kirkuk arrested six wanted people based on different legal articles, and found three explosive devices, six different rockets, a terrorist den, as well as 110 60mm mortar fuses,” Iraq’s Security Media Cell said late Tuesday.

The operation took place the same day several mortars landed near villages in Erbil’s Qoshtapa sub-district. Qoshtapa lies around 20 kilometers south of Erbil city, along the main road connecting Erbil and Kirkuk.

A source from the local Dibis police in Kirkuk, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Rudaw they confiscated a vehicle near Amsha village. The vehicle was found with two rockets on it.

Kirkuk is one of the many disputed territories between Kurdistan Region and Baghdad. The Islamic State group (ISIS) uses these disputed territories as places of hideout and to conduct hit and run attacks against civilian and military targets. 

The security void in Kirkuk has also been by groups to carry out rocket attacks. In May, security forces seized five rockets that were “set to launch” in the province’s Altun Kupri district.

Late last month, Iraqi security forces launched a wide anti-ISIS operation in Kirkuk, and Iraqi and Kurdish forces have set up Joint Coordination Centers in disputed areas to increase their cooperation and eliminate the security vacuum, including in Kirkuk.

In separate operations on Wednesday, two ISIS suspects were killed in an Iraqi air force operation in Diyala, and seven other suspects were arrested in Baghdad, Anbar, Nineveh, and Kirkuk, the Security Media Cell announced.

 

Updated at 2:58 pm