Counter Terrorism Service seizes ammunition caches in operations against ISIS remnants

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s Counter Terrorism Service said Sunday its forces had seized two ammunition caches and searched an Islamic State hideout during separate operations in Salah al-Din, Kirkuk and Diyala governorates.

The agency said operations were carried out based on precise intelligence as part of ongoing efforts to pursue Islamic State remnants. Forces seized one cache in the Hamrin mountain range along the Salah al-Din-Kirkuk border and searched a hideout containing explosive materials and ammunition in the same area. A second cache was seized in Mandali district in Diyala.

Islamic State declared its self-styled caliphate in 2014, controlling large parts of Iraq and Syria before losing its territory by 2019. The group continues to operate through sleeper cells, particularly in the Hamrin mountain range and surrounding areas.

Earlier this year Iraq received 5,704 Islamic State suspects from prisons in northeast Syria in coordination with coalition forces. As of April 2, the Ministry of Justice said the detainees were being held at Karkh Central Prison under layered security, with 1,000 of them questioned and no court rulings issued. The detainees represent more than 60 nationalities.