Arab shepherd reportedly kidnapped by ISIS in Kirkuk 

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – ISIS militants reportedly kidnapped an Arab shepherd in southern Kirkuk province on Monday. 

The incident occurred in Haftaghar village of Kirkuk's southern Daquq district early Monday, a local source told Kurdistan 24. 

Sayid Kareem Sayid Mohammad is an Arab shepherd from Tuz Khurmatu in Saladin province who brought his herd to the village for grazing, the source said. 

Local police did not immediately respond to Kurdistan 24's request for a comment on the matter. 

In early April, four Arab shepherds were kidnapped in Daquq near the village of Tamur. Their fate remains unknown. 

Since it lost all the Iraqi territory of its self-styled caliphate in 2017, ISIS remnants in the disputed territories between Erbil and Baghdad have frequently kidnapped civilians for ransom money from their families to fund their ongoing terror campaign. 

In May, the group released a Kurdish shepherd in the Dawood area between Tuz Khurmatu and Kifri districts after the victim's family paid $30,000 in ransom. Another was freed after a $25,000 ransom was paid. 

Iraqi and Kurdish forces launched a joint operation in the area after an uptick in kidnapping cases in Dawood. 

ISIS militants acquire their "financial and logistics support" from the Arab villages, the Peshmerga commander of the 2nd Sector, Mardan Salih, told Kurdistan 24 in May.

In late May, ISIS remnants killed 12 civilians and police officers in simultaneous attacks in Kirkuk and Nineveh provinces. 

Iraqi forces regularly carry out airstrikes against suspected hideouts and other targets used by the group in remote areas of the northern and western parts of the country.