Security In Iraq Oct 15-21, 2017

For the twelfth time in the last thirteen full weeks Iraq witnessed less than 100 security incidents. Casualties were extremely high however because of clashes between the Peshmerga and Iraqi forces.

There were just 60 incidents reported from October 15-21, 2017 in Iraq. That was the second lowest amount of the year with only 52 recorded September 22-28 being lower. Since August 15-21 there has been less than 100 incidents in 12 out of 13 weeks.

Ninewa led the country with 16 incidents, followed by 12 in Kirkuk, 11 in Baghdad, 6 in Salahddin, 5 each in Anbar and Diyala, 2 each in Babil and Kurdistan, and 1 in Dhi Qar.

Security Incidents In Iraq By Province Oct 15-21, 2017

Dhi Qar 1

Babil 2

KRG 2

Anbar 5

Diyala 5

Salahaddin 6

Baghdad 11

Kirkuk 12

Ninewa 16

321 people died and 449 were wounded during the week. 2 Turkish soldiers, 13 members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), 14 members of the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), 47 civilians, 118 Peshmerga, and 127 Hashd al-Shaabi lost their lives. Another 5 Turkish soldiers, 14 ISF, 116 civilians, 152 Hashd, and 162 Peshmerga were injured. By province there were 3 casualties in Anbar, 3 in Babil, 10 in Kurdistan, 32 in Baghdad, 35 in Diyala, 57 in Ninewa, 59 in Salahaddin and 571 in Kirkuk.

Casualties In Iraq By Province Oct 15-21, 2017

Anbar 3 (1 Killed, 2 Wounded)

Babil 3 (1 Killed, 2 Wounded)

KRG 10 (5 Killed, 5 Wounded)

Baghdad 32 (8 Killed, 24 Wounded)

Diyala 35 (12 Killed, 23 Wounded)

Ninewa 57 (46 Killed, 11 Wounded)

Salahaddin 59 (5 Killed, 54 Wounded)

Kirkuk 571 (243 Killed, 328 Wounded)

With the Iraqi forces having paused its campaign to free Western Anbar to take on the Kurds in the disputed territories violence has fallen off in the province. There were just 5 incidents during the week leading to 1 death and 2 wounded. Most of these were in central Anbar where the Islamic State still has a presence. The one exception was 7 car bombs being destroyed out by Qaim along the Syrian border.

The insurgents were still active in northeast Babil. There were just two incidents in the governorate, but both were in or around Jurf al-Sakhr. IS has re-infiltrated that area even though there are no civilians there to hide amongst. The district has been turned into a military base by the Hashd, which is the main target of attacks there.

Since the Mosul campaign, which started in October 2016, Baghdad has seen historic lows in violence. For the 3^rd week of October there were only 11 incidents in the capital with 8 dead and 24 wounded. These were all small attacks such as shootings and IEDs. Since the end of last year, the militants pulled back their forces from Baghdad, while a new operations commander was appointed who focused upon the rural areas on the outskirts of the city, which have been the support bases for the insurgents. Together these have accounted for the huge change in security.

The major incident in Diyala occurred when local police fired into a crowd protesting the Kurdish security forces withdrawing from Khanaqin in northeast Diyala. A large group marched on the police station where officers opened fire killing 1 and wounding 22. A policeman was also injured. The chief was suspended as a result. The militants have been rebuilding in the governorate, but were responsible for only 4 incidents during the week.

As part of Prime Minister Haidar Abadi’s attempt to re-assert federal authority over Kirkuk a large firefight broke out between the Iraqi forces and Peshmerga. That occurred in Altun Kubri when the federal forces advanced and the Kurds were afraid they were marching on Irbil. The day’s worth of fighting left 126 dead, 1 civilian, 2 soldiers, 6 Peshmerga, and 118 Hashd, and 157 wounded, 2 journalists, 5 soldiers, and 150 Hashd. Another 111 Peshmerga were killed and 162 wounded in clashes the week before when the government first moved into southern Kirkuk. A Turkmen Front office was also burned in Altun Kubri because of the tensions there. The two sides are still standing off as the Kurds are apprehensive of any moves towards their border.

Turkish operations against the PKK led to two incidents in northern Kurdistan. First, 2 IEDs killed 5 Turkish soldiers. Then a Turkish air strike killed 5 PKK fighters. Ankara is bombing PKK areas nearly every week, but casualties are rarely reported. Turkey also has troops stationed in Kurdistan, but this was a rare incident where some of them were attacked.

There were clashes between the Kurds and government forces in Ninewa as well. When the Iraqi forces moved to reclaim the Mosul Dam from the Peshmerga there was a short firefight that left 1 Peshmerga and 8 Hashd dead and 4 Kurds injured. The PKK also killed 2 Turkish soldiers and wounded 2 more with a bomb, which led to an air strike that killed 8 PKK. There were four incidents in Mosul, including a car bomb which was discovered and dismantled.

Tuz Kharmato blew up in another local clash. First, an office of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) the dominant Kurdish party in the town, was set on fire and 3 guards wounded. The next day there was a shootout between the Hashd and Peshmerga that left 5 dead and 51 wounded. There was also looting and the burning of homes. Every few months these incidents occur in the town, but this one was worse than previous ones as there was large scale lawlessness. Rather than being a result of the argument between Baghdad and Irbil these events are usually driven by local arguments, and are worked out by talks and negotiations.

Security In Iraq 2017

Week	Security Incidents	Dead	Wounded
Jan 1-7	188	509	1,346
Jan 8-14	168	371	1,036
Jan 15-21	137	585	1,262
Jan 22-28	145	289	310
Jan 29-31	74	127	338
JAN	712	1,881	4,292
Feb 1-7	123	388	176
Feb 8-14	164	434	390
Feb 15-21	148	393	508
Feb 22-28	185	647 + 399	1,390 + 1,634
FEB	620	1,862 + 399	2,464 + 1,634
Mar 1-7	179	749	622
Mar 8-14	171	551	614
Mar 15-21	143	571	1,166
Mar 22-28	152	1,233	575
Mar 29-31	71	374 + 278	288 + 2,925
MAR	716	3,478 + 278	3,265 + 2,925
Apr 1-7	174	903	487
Apr 8-14	126	599	669
Apr 15-21	108	479	449
Apr 22-28	122	698	328
Apr 29-30	39	138	51
APR	569	2,817	1,984
May 1-7	106	405	468
May 8-14	109	601	386
May 15-21	132	363	224
May 22-28	106	433	150
May 29-31	69	214	236
MAY	522	2,016	1,464
Jun 1-7	136	1,403	487
Jun 8-14	127	658	174
Jun 15-21	114	480	101
Jun 22-28	119	340	246
Jun 29-30	37	349	127
JUN	533	3,230	1,135
JAN-JUN	3,669	15,262 + 677	14,497 + 4,559
Jul 1-7	141	798	331
Jul 8-14	105	298	86
Jul 15-21	87	124	72
Jul 22-28	107	189	122
Jul 29-31	37	50	25
JUL	477	1,459	636
Aug 1-7	80	143	188
Aug 8-14	88	955	124
Aug 15-21	73	97	100
Aug 22-28	85	674	132
Aug 29-31	31	30	40
AUG	357	1,958	1,261
Sep 1-7	62	68	73
Sep 8-14	78	412	176
Sep 15-21	91	145	180
Sep 22-28	52	78	104
Sep 29-30	23	25	16
SEP	306	728	549
Oct 1-7	63	60	82
Oct 8-14	72	352	85
Oct 15-21	60	321	449

Violence By Province Oct 15-21, 2017

Province	Violence
Anbar	5 Incidents 1 Killed 1 ISF 2 Wounded 2 Civilians 1 Shooting 2 IEDs 3 Suicide Bombers Killed 7 Car Bombs Destroyed
Babil	2 Incidents 1 Killed 1 Civilian 2 Wounded 2 Hashd 1 Shooting 1 IED
Baghdad	11 Incidents 8 Killed 8 Civilians 24 Wounded 3 ISF 21 Civilians 3 Shootings 7 IEDs 1 Sticky Bomb
Dhi Qar	1 Incident 1 IED
Diyala	5 Incidents 12 Killed 12 Civilians 23 Wounded 1 ISF 22 Civilians 3 Shootings 2 IEDs
Kirkuk	12 Incidents 243 Killed 3 Civilians 4 ISF 117 Peshmerga 119 Hashd 328 Wounded 6 Civilians 10 ISF 150 Hashd 162 Peshmerga 6 Shootings 1 Suicide Bomber 1 Mortar 3 Suicide Bombers Killed
KRG	2 Incidents 5 Killed 5 PKK 5 Wounded 5 Turkish Soldiers 2 IEDs 1 Turkish Air Strike
Ninewa	16 Incidents 46 Killed 1 Peshmerga 2 Turkish Soldiers 8 PKK 8 Hashd 9 ISF 18 Civilians 11 Wounded 11 Civilians 7 Shootings 6 IEDs 2 Suicide Bombers 1 Turkish Air Strike 1 Car Bomb Dismantled
Salahaddin	6 Incidents 5 Killed 5 Civilians 54 Wounded 54 Civilians 1 Shooting 2 Suicide Bombers Killed

SOURCES

Al Alam, "Four Turkish soldiers killed in northern Iraq: army," 10/17/17

Al Ghad Press, “Video … Freed the village of Um al-Luz and the destruction of 7 car bombs in Qaim,” 10/17/17

Human Rights Watch, "Iraq: Fighting in Disputed Territories Kills Civilians," 10/20/17

Iraq Newspaper, “Iraq: Kurds And Turkmen: The Conditions Of The Baghdad Government For Negotiations Is Unacceptable,” 10/22/17

- "Iraqi Newspaper: The Killing Of 9 Peshmerga And One From The Christian Crowd In Mosul Dam And Comment Of Barzani," 10/17/17

Al Maalomah, "Security forces dismantle a car bomb in Mosul," 10/18/17

- "Three guards were injured by a large fire of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan headquarters in Tuz Kharmato," 10/15/17

Mostafa, Mohamed, "Iraq army seize Kirkuk area, Peshmerga say 26 fighters killed in 4 days," Iraqi News, 10/20/17

- "Peshmerga casualties in Kirkuk turmoil at 246: medics," Iraqi News, 10/18/17

Mostafa, Nehal, "24 protesters killed, injured in attempt to break into police station in Diyala," Iraqi News, 10/19/17

NINA, "Five Turkish soldiers killed and wounded by roadside bomb in northern Iraq," 10/16/17

- "Turkish Fighter Jets Target PKK Positions In Northern Iraq, Killing 5," 10/18/17

Rudaw, "Iraqi army, Shiite militia and Peshmerga exchange heavy fire north of Kirkuk," 10/20/17

Al Sumaria, "A civilian was killed and a policeman wounded by gunfire in Khanaqin and the Diyala Council demands an investigation," 10/19/17

Zucchino, David, “Iraqi Forces Overpower Kurs, but Public Relations Battle Rages,” New York Times, 10/22/17

Xinhua, "2 soldiers killed in Iraq's Altun Kupri clashes: military," 10/21/17