ISIS attack in Kirkuk leaves at least 12 Iraqi policemen dead: Source
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – An attack by ISIS militants against an Iraqi federal police unit in southern Kirkuk province late Saturday night left at least a dozen policemen killed, a security source told Kurdistan 24 the following morning.
The attack occurred in Kirkuk's Rashad district, where members of the extremist organization regularly launch hit-and-run attacks on security forces and civilians.
The source added that three other policemen had been wounded in the incident, but shared no further details.
Earlier, the military press office known as the Iraqi Security Media Cell confirmed that ISIS militants had indeed attacked the police unit, but did not disclose the number of casualties.
At least one Iraqi soldier was killed early Thursday in what appeared to be another ISIS attack, also in Kirkuk province. The suspected terrorists also kidnapped a villager, a local source added.
Read More: Iraqi soldier killed, civilian kidnapped in suspected ISIS attack in disputed Kirkuk
Following its territorial defeat in 2017 at the hands of the Iraqi and Kurdish forces, the remnants of the Islamic State regularly launch attacks in territories disputed by Baghdad and Erbil due to a security vacuum caused by a lack of coordination between Iraqi and Kurdistan Region forces.
On Saturday, Iraqi soldiers returned to an outpost close to a rural community in western Kirkuk province after the area's Kurdish residents complained to officials about worsened security conditions following recent ISIS attacks.
Read More: Iraqi army returns to outpost in rural Kirkuk after leaving causes uproar
A 30-man strong group of suspected ISIS members on Thursday attacked the rural community, killing at least one Iraqi soldier and wounding several villagers. They also kidnapped one local civilian whose whereabouts remain unknown.