ISIS Back Iraqi security squares

Islamic State Abductions and Guerrilla Murders in Iraq

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BAGHDAD – The security situation in Iraq is again disrupted after the ISIS militias have conducted a series of kidnappings and badbadinations of guerrillas in the country. The Iraqi government declared victory over ISIS last year.

Cases of kidnappings and murders committed by Islamic State militias occurred in a number of areas of Iraq, particularly in the provinces of Kirkuk, Diyala and Salahuddin. . The provinces just held elections in May.

In June, there were 83 cases of kidnapping in the three provinces. Most of it has occurred on the highway that connects Baghdad to Kirkuk. From March to May, there were at least 37 cases of kidnappings.

One of the kidnapping cases occurred on June 17th. At that time, three Shiite men were abducted by members of the Islamic State militia disguised as police at a roadside checkpoint. Bbadem Khudair, a relative of one of the victims, said shortly after the case, he pleaded with the Iraqi forces to chase the kidnappers. But the request was rejected. Finally, he decided to find his own brother.

"Six of us, all civilians, were walking about 10 or 12 kilometers away. We found their documents (kidnappers) scattered on the ground while we were walking," said Khudair.

The next day he received a phone call from his brother. His brother said that he was being held by the Islamic State. A member of the Islamic State told Khudair that his brother and two others would be executed if the Iraqi government did not release all the women detainees belonging to the Islamic State.

The kidnappers call Khudair every day. He told the government about this, but no Iraqi intelligence officer suggested tracking the kidnappers' location.

Ten days after the abduction, the three men were found dead in a mutilated state. Islamic State militias even inserted explosives between their body pieces to attack the person who found them.

Diyala provincial council chairman Ali al-Dani reveals that ISIS is currently moving with a smaller and hard-to-detect group. "The intelligence work is necessary," he said.

While provincial council chairman Salahuddin Ahmed al-Kareem said his territory is indeed vulnerable to the target of kidnappings and murders by the Islamic State. "There is not a single commander in charge of security in the province, it reinforces ISIS," Ahmed said.

Poor coordination, lack of central government support, and the culture of liability avoidance are obstacles to preventing and resisting the rise of the Islamic State group. Because in addition to the kidnapping and murder, the Islamic State also launched small-scale attacks.

Currently, Islamic State militias would be badembled and regrouped in the mountainous region of Hemrin to the northeast, extending from Diyala, to the border with Iran, across northern Salahuddin and south of Kirkuk. They face the main road of Iraq. Officials describe the area as a "triangle of death".

Iraqi intelligence and army officials have not been able to estimate how many members of the Islamic State are still active in Iraq. The number should exceed 1000 people. They are scattered in the desert and the mountains.

But Diyala's operations commander, Lieutenant General Muzher al-Azawi, said that in his sector, active members of the Islamic State had no more than 75 people. "They are hiding in the mountains, which makes them difficult to find, they plant explosives, they use" kick-off "tactics and snipers. They set up fake checkpoints to kidnap residents, "he said.

Iraq proclaimed its victory over ISIL in July 2017. The victory was announced after Iraqi forces and the US coalition successfully beat ISIS militia in Mosul. .