Peshmerga conducts anti-ISIS operation on Qarachogh mountain: Ministry of Peshmerga

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Ministry of Peshmerga on Thursday said that the 14th Infantry Brigade successfully conducted a search operation on the slopes of Qarachogh mountains near Makhmour.

The @KRG_MOPE 14th Infantry Brigade successfully conducted a search #operation on the slopes of Karachokh mountain, in order to destroy the remnants of #ISIS terrorists and maintain security in the area. pic.twitter.com/1mWPXCYxPp

— Ministry of Peshmerga (@KRG_MOPE) June 15, 2023

The goal of the operation was “to destroy the remnants of ISIS terrorists and maintain security in the area.”

Makhmour, situated approximately 60 kilometers southwest of Erbil, is a territory under dispute.

Ever since the downfall of its self-proclaimed caliphate in Iraq back in 2017, ISIS militants have been utilizing tunnels and hiding in Mount Qarachogh and other contested regions.

In the aftermath of the Kurdistan Region's independence referendum in 2017, the Iraqi forces expelled the Kurdish Peshmerga from the disputed territories, including Makhmour.

Consequently, significant security vulnerabilities emerged in these areas, which ISIS has exploited.

In response, Peshmerga and Iraqi forces have launched operations in the area to prevent the resurgence of ISIS.