Baghdad, Iraq – Iraq’s Counterterrorism Service announced on Friday the capture of two suspected members of ISIS, who are accused of holding military positions within the group’s operations in the Kirkuk and Fallujah regions. The arrests took place during coordinated operations in the Sulaymaniyah and Salah Al-Din governorates.
The operations, which involved collaboration with the Asayish Operations Directorate from the Kurdistan Region and the Federal Intelligence and Investigations Agency, also resulted in the destruction of several ISIS hideouts suspected of being used for logistical purposes.
In a statement, the Counterterrorism Service noted that, based on accurate intelligence, they successfully apprehended a terrorist in Sulaymaniyah who had served in a military role within ISIS’s Fallujah branch. The service also reported the capture of another individual in Salah Al-Din who held a similar position within the Kirkuk branch, in coordination with the Federal Intelligence and Investigations Agency.
Additionally, surveillance operations led to the destruction of four hideouts, a tunnel, and a cave located along the Kirkuk-Salah Al-Din border, including in the Hamrin mountain range and Jazirat Al-Hadar.
Despite Iraq declaring military victory over ISIS in 2017, the group continues to operate through sleeper cells. Iraqi security forces have significantly ramped up intelligence-driven operations to eliminate these remnants, often in partnership with international allies.
In a separate development in March 2025, Iraqi and U.S. forces carried out a targeted airstrike in Al Anbar province, killing Abdallah Maki Mosleh Al-Rifai, also known as Abu Khadija, the leader of ISIS in Iraq and Syria. Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani described him as “one of the most dangerous terrorists in Iraq and the world.”
