As death toll from ISIS attacks grow, Kurdistan president calls for ‘quick and robust' response from Erbil, Baghdad

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Following two deadly attacks by ISIS militants that targeted both Peshmerga forces and civilians on Thursday night, Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani called for effective military cooperation between Erbil and Baghdad to counter the ongoing threat of the extremist group.

Initial casualty numbers showed that seven Peshmerga and three civilians were killed, plus several wounded. Over the past hour, however, the death toll among the Kurdish security forces grew by three, bringing the total of dead so far to 13 and four wounded.

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"Daily ISIS attacks" require "quick and robust military reactions" from Baghdad and Erbil, Barzani said on Friday in a statement.

The military cooperation "has to fulfill the security vacuum existing in the disputed territories between the Kurdistan Region and the federal government," Barzani added, extending his condolences to the families of those killed in the latest bloody attack.

After the Kurdistan Region's 2017 independence referendum, Iraqi forces and Iranian-backed militias of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) in October 2017 pushed the Peshmerga out of multiple of the contested areas.

Since then, the areas have suffered from a lack of unified military strategy across large tracts of land ranging from Khanaqin in central Diyala province to Kirkuk and northward to multiple areas surrounding Mosul.

The Iraqi military announced in early November that it had launched a joint military operation with Kurdistan Region Peshmerga forces to pursue ISIS remnants in territories disputed by Baghdad and Erbil where the extremist organization has long exploited the security vacuum caused by gaps between Iraqi and Peshmerga forces.

Read More: Peshmerga warns of rising ISIS threat in post-election Iraq

In his statement responding to Thursday's attacks, Barzani also called on Iraqi political factions to come together despite the fact that they are currently in negotiations to form Iraq's next government in order to prevent ISIS from exploiting Iraq's political instability.

The attack comes days after ISIS ramped up its hit-and-run attacks in the Kifri area in Diyala province, also a disputed territory. Over three days, eight Peshmerga were killed in those assaults.