Coalition warplanes strike Islamic State positions near Kifri, Tooz: source

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – A Peshmerga source on Tuesday said US-led coalition warplanes struck Islamic State (IS) positions in areas between the provinces of Diyala and Salahuddin.

The bombardments took place near a village on the borders of the two districts of Tooz and Kifri – part of Salahuddin and Diyala provinces, respectively, the source, stationed in Kifri, told Kurdistan 24.

They could not confirm the number of casualties in the attacks. Other targets of the shelling were areas which coalition warplanes had struck earlier in December and killed 11 IS militants.

Despite the liberation of IS-held territories, the extremist group is reorganizing and taking advantage of ongoing instability to refocus its insurgent campaign against the Iraqi government.

The group’s attacks, kidnappings, ambushes, and use of explosives considerably increased in the country since the end of 2017, when Iraq declared final victory against IS.

The insurgency intensified after the attack and military takeover by Iraqi forces and Shia militias over Kirkuk and other disputed territories in October of last year, driving out the Kurdish Peshmerga forces.

Since then, there has been a substantial security vacuum as a result of the lack of military and security cooperation between Erbil and Baghdad.

Over the past few months, senior Kurdish military officials have warned Baghdad and the international community that the terrorist group is regrouping in disputed areas, namely inside and around the Kirkuk, Diyala, Nineveh, and Salahuddin provinces, all of which are currently under the control of Iraqi forces and Shia militias.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany

(Additional reporting by Kurdistan 24 correspondent Harem Jaff)