Kirkuk security arrests two confirmed IS militants among Hawija IDPs

KIRKUK, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – Kirkuk security forces on Thursday announced they had arrested two Islamic State (IS) militants in the southern town of Daquq after they attempted to infiltrate the area hiding among displaced people from the neighboring city of Hawija.

The arrest of the two IS fighters came as intelligence services gathered information in the area.

Daquq is a town in Kirkuk located in the southeast of the province, with parts of the area still in the hands of the jihadist group.

“One of them is from the town of Riyadh next to Hawija. He has been fighting for Da’esh for three years and worked in their intelligence sector. He has also participated in many battles against the Peshmerga and security forces,” the announcement read.

It was also revealed that his father, in 2007, was a senior al-Qaeda leader in the Hamreen and Hawija areas.

The second arrested jihadist is from al-Abbasi town, southwest Hawija, and was in charge of creating and planting improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in Hawija for the past three years.

“His father and three of his brothers were Da’esh militants. Two of his brothers were killed while fighting Peshmerga forces,” according to the statement.

Security services stated that the two militants snuck into Kirkuk a few weeks ago while hiding among Hawija internally displaced persons (IDPs) residing in the town of Daquq.

Kirkuk is home to over half a million IDPs who have fled the threat of IS in other provinces in Iraq. Peshmerga and security forces have reported having arrested many jihadists traveling among IDPs, aiming at carrying out terrorist attacks within the city and province of Kirkuk.

Iraqi forces are preparing to launch a military operation to retake Hawija in cooperation with Peshmerga forces. It is the jihadist group's last stronghold in northern Iraq.

G.H. Renaud