13 ISIS militants arrested in Baghdad: interior ministry

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Thirteen Islamic State (ISIS) group militants in Baghdad have been arrested, Iraq’s Ministry of Interior announced on Sunday.

In coordination between the Iraqi intelligence and federal police, “13 terrorists in different areas of the governorate,” were arrested after having arrest warrants issued by judiciaries in several provinces, the ministry announced in a statement. 

The ministry says that statements of confession have been recorded and handed over to relevant parties, alongside their “original documents” as they have been operating under aliases.

After seizing swathes of the country in the summer of 2014, ISIS was announced territorially defeated in Iraq in 2017 but continues to launch attacks against both civilians and members of the security forces, particularly in Iraq's Northern provinces and territory disputed between Baghdad and Erbil.

On Thursday, ISIS claimed in its weekly propaganda newspaper al-Naba that it had killed and injured at least 22 people in 8 attacks in Iraq from January 28 to February 3.

Deputy Minister of Peshmerga Sarbast Lazgin warned in late January that ISIS was growing in strength and reorganizing in Iraq, particularly in areas disputed between Erbil and Baghdad. 

France’s armed forces minister Florence Parly said on January 10 that ISIS has “regained strength” in both Iraq and Syria. 

ISIS claimed responsibility for a double suicide bombing in central Baghdad’s Tayaran Square on January 21 that left more than 30 dead and 110 injured.  

Iraq’s Security Media Cell said on January 9 explosions reported north of Babylon early were ISIS attacks on several electric pylons in the area and not airstrikes, while Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF, or Hashd al-Shaabi in Arabic) propaganda channels on Telegram reported they were US airstrikes.

According to its propaganda agency Amaq, the terror group carried out 1,422 attacks in Iraq in 2020, with the highest number of attacks recorded in Diyala province.

A total of 2,748 people were killed as a result, the agency said in January.

 

Source: https://www.rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iraq/070220213