Slight Uptick In Islamic State Ops In Iraq As New Year Begins

(Iraqi News)

As the new year began the Islamic State began picking up its attacks in Iraq. During the last two months of 2018 security incidents dramatically dropped off as the group apparently pulled back during the winter. The rise in 2019 was due to renewed activity in Anbar, Kirkuk, and Salahaddin.

 

There were a total of 125 incidents reported in Iraq in January 2019. 11 of those were Turkish air strikes upon the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in northern Kurdistan. That left 114 by the Islamic State. Another two of those were mass graves of IS victims being found in Ninewa leaving 112 attacks during the month due to the insurgency. That compared to 109 in November and 95 in December.

Diyala with 32 and Kirkuk with 28 incidents led the country in violence during the month, followed by 16 in Anbar, 14 in Salahaddin, 12 in Baghdad, 9 in Ninewa and 3 in Babil.

Security Incidents In Iraq By Province

Province	Jan 1-7	Jan 8-14	Jan 15-21	Jan 22-28	Jan 29-31	TOTALS
Anbar	6	3	2	4	1	16
Babil	-	1	-	-	2	3
Baghdad	3	4	2	1	2	12
Diyala	5	7	6	9	4	32
Kirkuk	10	7	8	3	1	28
KRG	1	2	3	5	-	11
Ninewa	3	3	-	1	2	9
Salahaddin	4	5	1	4	-	14
TOTALS	32	32	22	27	12	125

Casualties In Iraq By Province

Province	Jan 1-7	Jan 8-14	Jan 15-21	Jan 22-28	Jan 29-30	TOTALS
Anbar	4 (1K, 3)	30 (4K, 26W)	2 (2W)	9 (5K, 4W)	1 (1K)	46 (11K, 35W)
Babil	-	2 (2W)	-	-	4 (4W)	6 (6W)
Baghdad	3 (3K)	3 (3K)	2 (2K)	1 (1K)	4 (4K)	13 (13K)
Diyala	2 (2W)	3 (1K, 2W)	10 (6K, 4W)	15 (3K, 12W)	1 (1W)	31 (10K, 21W)
Kirkuk	16 (2K, 14W)	11 (5K, 6W)	13 (3K, 10W)	3 (2K, 1W)	1 (1K)	44 (13K, 31W)
KRG	7 (7K)	3 (3K)	6 (6K)	19 (19K)	-	35 (35K)
Ninewa	3 (3K)	69 (69K)	-	2 (2K)	2 (1K, 1W)	76 (75K, 1W)
Salahaddin	6 (1K, 5)	29 (12K, 17W)	-	18 (4K, 14W)	-	53 (17K, 36W)
TOTALS	41 (17K, 24W)	150 (97K, 53W)	33 (17K, 16W)	67 (36K, 31W)	15 (7K, 6W)	304 (174K, 130W)

There were a total of 174 deaths and 130 wounded in January. 139 of those killed were due to the insurgency while 35 were from Turkish air strikes. 66 bodies were also found in those two mass graves in Ninewa leaving 73 recent deaths by IS. Two of the wounded were also due to Turkey. In total, 10 Hashd al-Shaabi, 31 PKK, 40 Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), and 93 civilians lost their lives, and 1 Asayesh, 1 Peshmerga, 20 Hashd, 22 ISF, and 58 civilians were injured. Minus the mass graves, Salahaddin had the most casualties with 53, followed by 46 in Anbar, 44 in Kirkuk, and 31 in Diyala.

Anbar was one province that IS had largely withdrawn from during the winter. Incidents went from 16 in October down to just 6 in November and 8 in December. In January however IS was back with 16 attacks. That included one gun battle with the security forces, 1 kidnapping of farmers, 2 mukhtars assassinated, and a suicide and car bomb, plus another vehicle bomb that was discovered and dismantled. These stretched from Fallujah in the east to Qaim in the West by the Syrian border.

Islamic State Activity in Iraq 2018-19

Anbar	Shootings (Totals)	IEDs/ Sticky Bombs (Totals)	Gun Battles	Attacks on Checkpoints	Attacks on Mukhtars/ Sheikhs	Mortars/ Rockets	Kidnappings	Suicide Bombers	Car Bombs
Jan 2018	8	-	-	-	2	-	-	-	1
Feb	3	8	1	-	-	-	-	1	-
Mar	6	15	3	2	-	1	1	-	-
Apr	1	5	1	-	-	-	-	3	-
May	2	7	-	-	1	-	-	-	-
Jun	4	3	2	-	-	-	1	-	-
Jul	3	5	1	-	-	-	-	-	-
Aug	4	4	2	1	-	-	-	-	1
Sep	3	8	-	-	-	-	-	2	-
Oct	9	5	3	1	1	-	2	1	1
Nov	1	3	-	-	1	-	1	-	-
Dec	1	4	-	-	1	-	-	-	-
Jan 2019	6	4	1	-	2	-	1	1	1

  

There were just three incidents in Babil. Two attacks happened in Jurf al-Sakhr in the northeast by Anbar and one in Iskandiriya in the center. IS has largely been dormant there since 2017. Incidents were in single digits for all of last year except for January with 10. In September for example there was 5, followed by 4 in October, 1 in November and 2 in December. Babil used to be a major base for the Islamic State, but after it lost Jurf al-Sakhr it moved on to other areas. That district was completely emptied of people by the Iraqi forces and none have returned since, depriving a population the insurgents could hide within.

Baghdad is another governorate the militants largely pulled out of at the end of last year. Incidents went from 30 in October to 13 in November and 14 in December. In January 2019 there were just 12. 6 of those were in the other northern towns like Taji and Tarmiya, 4 in the outer western towns like Abu Ghraib, and 2 in the outer south. All the attacks were shootings. The capital used to be the main terrorist target for the insurgents, but now that they are rebuilding they are not committing the resources there. They have to return to Baghdad however to be relevant. If attacks start going back up there that would be a sign that the insurgency has moved into a new phase.

Violence in Diyala has remained relatively stable since September. That month there were 36 incidents with 35 in October, 34 in November, 28 in December and 32 in January. Last month one town was attacked, there were 3 gun battles with the security forces, and 8 assaults upon checkpoints. During January attacks shifted. At first, most were in the Muqtadiya district (6 total) in the center and the Khanaqin-Jalawla districts in the northeast (11 total). In the middle of the month, IS began hitting Abu Saida in the center with 9 attacks. The government has been ineffective in countering the group due to many different security forces being deployed with little coordination between them. There is also little presence outside of major cities and towns, giving the Islamic State largely free reign in the rural areas.

Diyala	Shootings (Totals)	IEDs/ Sticky Bombs (Totals)	Gun Battles	Attacks on Checkpoints	Attacks on Mukhtars/ Sheikhs	Kidnappings	Attacks on Towns	Mortars Rockets	Suicide Bombers	Car Bombs
Jan 2018	20	24	2	7	-	1	-	6	1	1
Feb	14	13	4	3	-	-	-	-	1	-
Mar	29	21	14	5	1	2	1	5	-	-
Apr	13	18	2	2	-	-	-	2	-	-
May	11	11	1	3	1	1	3	4	1	-
Jun	32	17	5	12	-	1	5	4	-	-
Jul	20	19	2	3	-	2	3	1	-	-
Aug	17	18	2	2	1	1	3	3	-	-
Sep	20	12	5	1	-	2	5	5	-	-
Oct	11	22	2	-	1	1	-	4	-	-
Nov	17	13	5	2	1	1	4	4	-	-
Dec	15	10	3	3	-	1	1	2	-	-
Jan 2019	21	2	3	8	-	-	1	5	-	-

 

Kirkuk was the second province where security incidents went up. There were 18 in November, 16 in December, and then 28 in January. These attacks are concentrated in three areas, Riyad and Hawija in the South and Dibs in the north. In January, there were three kidnappings including two mukhtars, 4 attacks upon checkpoints, and a car bomb. Like Diyala, this is a core area of IS’s rebuilding project.

Kirkuk	Shootings (Totals)	IEDs/ Sticky Bombs (Totals)	Gun Battles	Attacks on Checkpoints	Attacks on Mukhtars/ Sheikhs	Kidnappings	Attacks on Towns	Mortars Rockets	Suicide Bombers	Car Bombs
Jan 2018	13	6	4	1	-	-	-	3	3	1
Feb	21	10	7	3	-	-	-	4	1	-
Mar	22	15	11	2	-	2	1	3	1	1
Apr	18	4	3	1	-	-	8	1	-	1
May	14	28	2	-	2	1	1	4	4	-
Jun	25	12	4	2	-	2	10	6	-	-
Jul	7	20	1	2	-	-	-	-	-	1
Aug	7	20	2	1	2	-	-	2	-	1
Sep	14	25	2	2	1	3	4	2	-	-
Oct	16	29	1	4	4	1	4	2	-	1
Nov	7	7	2	-	-	2	-	1	-	-
Dec	8	6	-	-	1	3	1	2	-	-
Jan 2019	8	17	-	4	2	3	-	2	-	1

 

IS was largely inactive in Ninewa in January. There were only 9 incidents there compared to 19 in December, 20 in November, and 19 in October. A mukhtar was assassinated along with three other people in the Badush district. IS has mostly been carrying out operations south and west of Mosul.

Ninewa	Shootings (Totals)	IEDs/ Sticky Bombs (Totals)	Gun Battles	Attacks on Checkpoints	Attacks on Mukhtars/ Sheikhs	Kidnappings	Attacks on Towns	Suicide Bombers	Car Bombs
Jan 2018	18	8	7	1	1	-	-	-	-
Feb	19	7	8	1	-	1	-	1	-
Mar	20	6	7	1	-	1	-	-	-
Apr	8	6	4	-	-	-	-	-	-
May	11	6	6	-	-	-	-	-	-
Jun	7	2	3	1	-	-	-	-	-
Jul	9	9	1	1	1	1	2	-	-
Aug	9	9	2	-	-	1	1	-	-
Sep	8	3	2	-	-	-	-	1	-
Oct	13	5	-	1	-	1	-	-	1
Nov	9	7	2	1	-	-	3	-	1
Dec	8	6	1	-	3	1	-	-	1
Jan 2019	6	-	-	-	1	-	-	-	-

 

Attacks picked up in Salahaddin as well. there were only 8 in December, but then 14 in January. The incidents occurred in Shirqat and Baiji in the north to Tikrit and Samarra in the center. They included one attack upon a checkpoint, 3 kidnappings, 3 gun battles, and a truck bomb that hit Tikrit. Salahaddin used to be one of the main areas IS was regrouping in as well, but seemed to move out of the province during the summer. They could be making a return in 2019.

Salahaddin	Shootings (Totals)	IEDs/ Sticky Bombs (Totals)	Gun Battles	Attacks on Checkpoints	Attacks on Mukhtars/ Sheikhs	Kidnappings	Attacks on Towns	Mortars Rockets	Suicide Bombers	Car Bombs
Jan 2018	11	9	8	-	-	-	-	2	-	1
Feb	7	5	1	1	-	2	-	-	-	-
Mar	23	8	9	2	-	3	-	-	1	-
Apr	6	8	2	2	-	-	-	-	1	-
May	14	10	10	1	1	-	-	1	1	-
Jun	15	15	4	1	-	7	-	-	-	1
Jul	9	6	-	4	-	-	2	1	1	-
Aug	9	15	1	3	-	1	1	1	1	-
Sep	5	10	1	1	-	-	1	1	3	1
Oct	2	9	1	-	-	1	-	1	1	-
Nov	5	7	2	2	-	1	-	1	-	2
Dec	4	-	2	1	-	1	-	1	-	-
Jan 2019	5	5	3	1	-	3	-	-	-	1

(Gun Battles, Attacks on Checkpoints, Attacks on Mukhtars, Attacks on Towns are all subsets of the total number of shootings and IEDs/Sticky Bombs reported)

Along with the increase in total incidents there were more mass casualty bombings as well. There were 3 car bombs and 1 suicide bomber in January. That was the most since 2 suicide bombers and 3 vehicle bombs in October. Tikrit was the only major city that was hit in January. The others were in smaller towns like Qaim in western Anbar.

Suicide-Car Bombs In Iraq 2018-19

Month	Suicide Bombers	Car Bombs	Totals
Jan	7 (1- Diyala, 3 – Baghdad/Baghdad, 3 - Kirkuk)	6 (1- Anbar, 1 – Diyala, 1 – Kirkuk, 1 – Salahaddin, 2 - Babil)	13
Feb	4 (1 – Anbar/Ramadi 1 – Diyala 1 – Kirkuk 1 - Ninewa)	-	4
Mar	2 (1 – Kirkuk/Kirkuk 1 - Salahaddin)	1 (1 – Kirkuk)	3
Apr	4 (1 - Salahaddin 3 – Anbar)	1 (1 – Kirkuk/Kirkuk)	5
May	8 (1 – Diyala 1 - Salahaddin) 2 – Baghdad/1 - Baghdad 4 - Kirkuk)	-	8
Jun		1 (1 – Salahaddin/Tikrit)	1
Jul	1 (1 – Salahaddin/Tikrit)	1 (1 – Kirkuk/Kirkuk)	2
Aug	1 (1 – Salahaddin)	2 (1 – Anbar, 1 – Kirkuk)	3
Sep	6 (1 – Ninewa) 2 – Anbar 3 – Salahaddin)	2 (1 – Kirkuk 1 – Salahaddin)	8
Oct	2 (1 – Anbar/Fallujah 1 – Salahaddin)	3 (1 – Anbar/Fallujah 1 – Kirkuk/Kirkuk 1 - Ninewa)	5
Nov	-	3 (1 – Ninewa/Mosul 2 – Salahaddin/Tikrit)	3
Dec	-	1 (1 – Ninewa)	1
Jan	1 (1 – Anbar)	3 (1 – Anbar 1 – Kirkuk 1 – Salahaddin/Tikrit)	4

Security In Iraq 2018-19

Week	Security Incidents (Total/By IS)	Dead (Total/By IS)	Wounded (Total/By IS)
Jan 1-7	62/60	45	63
Jan 8-14	58/56	58/56	66/63
Jan 15-21	62/59	151	151
Jan 22-28	59/51	140/136	65/63
Jan 29-31	24	21	21
JAN 2018	265/ 250 by IS	417/ 409 by IS (196 Violent Deaths)	366/ 361 by IS
Feb 1-7	58/56	192/141	62/60
Feb 8-14	57	58	91
Feb 15-21	53/52	343	43
Feb 22-28	46/44	38/37	70/68
FEB	214/ 209 by IS	631/ 579 by IS (215 Violent Deaths)	266/ 262 by IS
Mar 1-7	68/64	115/108	79/77
Mar 8-14	52	75	59
Mar 15-21	64/59	165/119	98
Mar 22-28	77/64	210/87	61/60
Mar 29-31	19/18	26/25	34
MAR	280/ 257 by IS	591/ 414 by IS (446 Violent Deaths)	331/ 328 by IS
Apr 1-7	38/34	172/140	27/25
Apr 8-14	60/52	173/136	81/72
Apr 15-21	43/35	63/18	72/70
Apr 22-28	40/31	60/30	39/33
Apr 29-30	12/11	14/11	4
APR	193/ 163 by IS	482/ 335 by IS (236 Violent Deaths)	223/ 204 by IS
May 1-7	45/39	52/43	55/54
May 8-14	55/51	68/46	49
May 15-21	35/32	55/26	80/75
May 22-28	49/46	72/62	51/49
May 29-31	16/13	39/30	15
MAY	200/ 181 by IS	286/ 207 by IS (261 Violent Deaths)	250/ 242 by IS
Jun 1-7	50/44	96/87	29/28
Jun 8-14	67/59	107/47	88
Jun 15-21	40/35	82/28	19
Jun 22-28	45/44	53/38	62
Jun 29-30	17/15	21/16	14
JUN	219/ 197 by IS	359/ 216 by IS (315 Violent Deaths)	212/ 211 by IS
Jul 1-7	50/49	56/52	90
Jul 8-14	42/39	56/47	31
Jul 15-21	50/45	59/42	63
Jul 22-28	29/24	61/53	19/15
Jul 29-31	23/21	25/13	11
JUL	194/ 178 by IS	257/ 207 by IS (212 Violent Deaths)	214/ 210 by IS
Aug 1-7	43/39	49/45	30/29
Aug 8-14	43/42	38	44
Aug 15-21	38/35	24/21	40/37
Aug 22-28	35/31	25/19	61
Aug 29-31	27/24	68/30	43
AUG	186/ 171 by IS	204/ 153 by IS (189 Violent Deaths)	218/ 214 by IS
Sep 1-7	38	44	54
Sep 8-14	48/43	63/55	127
Sep 15-21	44/38	90/74	70
Sep 22-28	36/33	22/17	27/26
Sep 29-30	9/6	19/10	29/25
SEP	175/ 158 by IS	237/ 200 by IS (179 Violent Deaths)	307/ 302 by IS
Oct 1-7	54/49	85/25	92
Oct 8-14	43/41	161/152	41
Oct 15-21	54/50	87/72	35
Oct 22-28	24/23	24/20	53
Oct 29-31	23	10	24
OCT	198/ 186 by IS	367/ 279 by IS (177 Violent Deaths)	245 by IS
Nov 1-7	32/31	75/69	36
Nov 8-14	39/31	111/63	19
Nov 15-21	30/27	51/43	29
Nov 22-28	26/21	35/25	30
Nov 29-30	9/8	4	27
NOV	136/ 118 by IS	276/ 204 by IS (183 Violent Deaths_	141 by IS
Dec 1-7	22/15	21/8	11
Dec 8-14	22	15	22
Dec 15-21	23/21	23/16	17
Dec 22-28	30/28	24/18	37
Dec 29-31	15/14	225/220	4
DEC	112/ 100 by IS	308/ 277 by IS (96 Violent Deaths)	91 by IS
Jan 1-7	32/31	17/10	24
Jan 8-14	32/30	97/94	53
Jan 15-21	22/18	17/11	16/14
Jan 22-28	27/22	36/17	31
Jan 29-31	12	7	6
JAN	125/ 114 by IS	174/ 139 by IS (108 Violent Deaths)	130/ 128 by IS

Violence By Province Jan 2019

Province	Violence
Anbar	16 Incidents 11 Killed 11 Civilians 35 Wounded 1 Hashd  34 Civilians 6 Shootings 4 IEDs 1 Suicide Bomber 1 Car Bomb 1 Grenade 1 Car Bomb Dismantled
Babil	3 Incidents 6 Wounded 6 Hashd 2 IEDs 1 Car Bomb Dismantled
Baghdad	12 Incidents 13 Killed 13 Civilians 12 Shootings
Diyala	32 Incidents 10 Killed 2 Hashd 3 Civilians 5 ISF 21 Wounded 1 Peshmerga 1 Asayesh 7 Civilians 12 ISF 21 Shootings 2 IEDs 5 Mortars 1 Rockets
Kirkuk	28 Incidents 13 Killed 2 Hashd 4 ISF 7 Civilians 31 Wounded 3 ISF 7 Hashd 21 Civilians 8 Shootings 17 IEDs 1 Suicide Car Bomb 2 Mortars
Kurdistan	11 Incidents 35 Killed 4 Civilians 31 PKK 11 Turkish Air Strikes
Ninewa	9 Incidents 75 Killed 28 ISF 47 Civilians 1 Wounded 1 Civilian 6 Shootings
Salahaddin	14 Incidents 17 Killed 3 ISF 6 Hashd 8 Civilians 36 Wounded 6 Hashd 7 ISF 23 Civilians 5 Shootings 5 IEDs 1 Suicide Truck Bomb