Security In Iraq, Jun 8-14, 2018

The second week of June 2018 saw a jump in incidents and casualties in Iraq due to a large spike in violence in Kirkuk and continued clashes between the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and Turkey in northern Kurdistan.

There were 72 incidents during the week. That was the third most of the year, only behind 78 and 81 during the first and third weeks of March respectively. The two main causes of the higher figure were 26 incidents in Kirkuk and 8 in Kurdistan. 26 was the most incidents recorded by Musings On Iraq for Kirkuk going back 5 years. The 8 incidents in Kurdistan were due to the ongoing Turkish operation against the PKK.

Security Incidents In Iraq By Province Jun 8-14, 2018

Irbil 1

Anbar 3

Babil 4

Ninewa 5

Salahddin 5

Kurdistan 7

Baghdad 9

Diyala 11

Kirkuk 26

Casualties In Iraq By Province Jun 8-14, 2018

Irbil 5 (5 Killed)

Baghdad 7 (2 Killed, 5 Wounded)

Ninewa 7 (7 Killed)

Salahaddin 7 (4 Killed, 3 Wounded)

Babil 10 (5 Killed, 5 Wounded)

Diyala 47 (9 Killed, 38 Wounded)

Kurdistan 55 (55 Killed)

Kirkuk 58 (21 Killed, 37 Wounded)

There were 108 fatalities and 88 wounded from June 8-14 in Iraq. 3 bodies were found in the rubble of west Mosul, leaving 105 violent deaths during the week. 60 of those were from the Turkish operation in Kurdistan, and 45 in the rest of the country. 5 Hashd al-Shaabi, 12 Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), 19 Turkish soldiers, 31 civilians, and 41 PKK members died, and 15 Hashd, 20 ISF, and 53 civilians were injured. Kirkuk had the most casualties with 58 followed by 55 in Kurdistan, and 47 in Diyala.

Anbar remained very quiet. There were just 3 incidents. Two were infiltration attempts by Islamic State fighters, while 2 suicide bombers were killed in Baghdadi in the Ramadi area. There were complaints about abuses by Hashd units in Qaim and Fallujah. They were accused of kidnappings, blackmail, and arbitrary arrests.

IS was again active in Babil after having slowed down its operations there in past weeks. There was an attack upon a group of Hashd wounding two, two IEDs that killed 5 police and wounded 3 more, and an ex-soldier was kidnapped. 3 of those incidents took place in Jurf al-Sakhr, which is bereft of civilians and is now a military base. It has been a favorite target of the insurgents as a result.

A car bomb was discovered and dismantled in north Baghdad. The rest of the week there was the usual mix of IEDs, robberies, kidnappings, and one shooting. The insurgents are back at attempting mass casualty bombings in the capital governorate. Fortunately, most have failed.

The Islamic State remained active throughout Diyala. The worst attack was an IED upon a market in Khalis that left 1 dead and 23 wounded. Diyala is one of three provinces the insurgency is rebuilding in. They have cells in all the rural areas, and are moving back and forth into Salahaddin.

There was an explosion of violence in Kirkuk. Like Diyala, this is another area where the militants are rebuilding mostly in the south, but with cells in Kirkuk city as well. In the rural south, IS is attempting to reclaim control by intimidating farmers, demanding taxes and attacking the security forces. For example, during the week five farms and fields were burned for not paying the insurgents, and five people were kidnapped. There was also an extended attack upon a checkpoint that left 5 dead and 13 wounded. Since the federal forces took over the governorate in October 2016 security has steadily deteriorated. The ISF is present in the cities but not in rural areas. It lacks good intelligence, and there are gaps between the Iraqi forces and the Peshmerga.

Turkey has threatened to attack the PKK’s longtime base in the Qandil Mountains and continues to move deeper into Kurdistan. This is part of a 3 month long operation, the largest Ankara has undertaken in years. Air strikes and gun battles left 19 Turkish soldiers and 41 PKK dead during the week. Neither Baghdad nor Irbil has any forces in this area, so they are powerless to do anything about it. President Erdogan on the other hand appears to be set for a final battle against the Kurdish group, which is occurring right before Turkish elections.

There were few incidents in Ninewa, but there were two gun battles with IS, an attack upon a checkpoint, and a mukhtar was assassinated. Otherwise there has been little militant activity in the governorate for months.

Salahaddin is the third area where IS is rebuilding. Incidents there continue to fluctuate up and down. During the second week of June was one of the quiet periods with just 5 incidents.

Security In Iraq 2017-18

Week	Security Incidents	Dead	Wounded
JAN 2017	719	1,923	4,374
FEB	628	1,891 + 399	2,511 + 1,634
MAR	720	3,504 + 278	3,302 + 2,925
APR	578	2,933	1,955
MAY	528	2,038	1,563
JUN	534	2,038	1,563
JUL	478	1,490	650
AUG	359	1,949	584
SEP	306	728	549
OCT	286	913	865 + 1,700
NOV	296	1,282	425
DEC	261	763	300
Jan 1-7	71	50	66
Jan 8-14	64	62	70
Jan 15-21	68	156	151
Jan 22-28	68	148	66
Jan 29-31	27	23	22
JAN 2018	298	439 (218 Violent Deaths)	375
Feb 1-7	66	196	67
Feb 8-14	65	63	93
Feb 15-21	59	346	43
Feb 22-28	55	44	72
FEB	245	649 (233 Violent Deaths)	275
Mar 1-7	78	120	84
Mar 8-14	60	84	61
Mar 15-21	67	168	98
Mar 22-28	81	213	61
Mar 29-31	21	26	35
MAR	307	611 (466 Violent Deaths)	339
Apr 1-7	40	174	29
Apr 8-14	64	175	83
Apr 15-21	44	63	72
Apr 22-28	44	62	48
Apr 29-30	12	12	4
APR	204	486 (240 Violent Deaths)	236
May 1-7	51	57	56
May 8-14	56	68	49
May 15-21	39	58	82
May 22-28	51	73	51
May 29-31	21	42	15
MAY	218	298 (273 Violent Deaths)	253
Jun 1-7	55	100	32
Jun 8-14	72	108	88

Violence By Province Jun 8-14, 2018

Province	Violence
Anbar	3 Incidents 2 Shootings 2 Suicide Bombers Killed
Babil	4 Incidents 5 Killed 5 ISF 5 Wounded 2 Hashd 3 ISF 1 Shooting 2 IEDs
Baghdad	9 Incidents 2 Killed 2 Civilians 5 Wounded 5 Civilians 2 Shootings 2 IEDs 1 Grenade 1 Car Bomb Dismantled
Diyala	11 Incidents 9 Killed 3 ISF 6 Civilians 38 Wounded 12 ISF 26 Civilians 3 Shootings 9 IEDs 1 Mortar
Irbil	1 Incident 5 Killed 5 Turkish Soldiers 1 Shooting
Kirkuk	26 Incidents 21 Killed 1 ISF 3 Hashd 17 Civilians 37 Wounded 5 ISF 10 Hashd 22 Civilians 10 Shootings 6 IEDs 1 Rocket 3 Mortars
Kurdistan	7 Incidents 55 Killed 14 Turkish Soldiers 41 PKK 2 Shootings 5 Turkish Air Strikes
Ninewa	5 Incidents 7 Killed 3 ISF 4 Civilians 4 Shootings
Salahaddin	5 Incidents 4 Killed 2 Hashd 2 Civilians 3 Wounded 3 Hashd 1 Shooting 1 IED

SOURCES

Anadolu Agency, "Attacks kill 3 in Iraq's Kirkuk," 6/11/18

Baghdad Post, "2 IMIS terrorists wounded in Hillah," 6/8/18

Bas News, "Unidentified Gunman Kill, Wound Twelve Hashd al-Shaabi Militiamen in Southern Kirkuk," 6/11/18

Ebraheem, Mohammed, "Islamic State militants attack police station in Nineveh, kill two guards," Iraqi News, 6/9/18

- “Pro-gov’t fighters arrest civilians in Anbar without good reason – source,” Iraqi News, 6/10/18

Al Ghad Press, “A local official reveals movement of Daesh in three areas between Diyala and Salahaddin,” 6/8/18

Iraq Newspaper, "One Officer And Four Policemen Were Killed In Jurf Al-Sakhr And Two Policemen In Khanaqin," 6/13/18

Mostafa, Nehal, "Two Islamic State suicide bombers killed, west of Anbar: Commander," Iraqi News, 6/11/18

NINA, "3 Federal Police, Including An Officer, Wounded In A Bomb North Of Babylon," 6/11/18

- "An Attack For Daesh Thwarted In Fataha And Harariat Areas," 6/11/18

- "Daesh burns agricultural land, and the killing of three of its elements west of Kirkuk," 6/8/18

- "Daesh Burns Farms And Some House South of Kirkuk," 6/12/18

- "Gunmen kidnapped a retired military person north of Babylon," 6/8/18

- "The Mukhtar of a village assassinated and the discovery of a mass grave of the elements of Daesh in Nineveh," 6/14/18

- "A Police Man Killed South of Mosul," 6/8/18

- "Security Forces Kill 2 Terrorists Northwest Of Mosul," 6/10/18

Rudaw, "ISIS takes 5 people hostage in Kirkuk," 6/11/18

Shafaaq News, “Fallujah accuses militias in the crowd of abductions and extortion: We will lose confidence in them,” 6/8/18

Al Sumaria, "Anti-explosive unit dismantled a car bomb north Baghdad," 6/12/18

- "One dead and 23 injured," 6/9/18