Security In Iraq, Nov 8-14, 2017

The greatly improved security environment continued for another week in Iraq. From Nov 8-14, there were less than 100 incidents, but the number of dead was very high due to another mass grave being discovered.

There were 62 incidents during the second week of November. That marked the fourteenth full week with less than one hundred incidents recorded in the media. Since the Battle of Mosul, the Islamic State has collapsed and its terrorist cells are barely operating anymore.

Broken down by province there was 1 incident in Babil, 1 in Dohuk, 1 in Wasit, 2 in Kurdistan, 6 in Salahaddin, 7 in Anbar, 8 in Kirkuk, 9 in Diyala, 12 in Ninewa and 15 in Baghdad.

Security Incidents In Iraq By Province Nov 8-14, 2017

Babil 1

Dohuk 1

Wasit 1

KRG 2

Salahaddin 6

Anbar 7

Kirkuk 8

Diyala 9

Ninewa 12

Baghdad 15

Those incidents led to 445 dead and just 64 wounded. 5 Hashd al-Shaabi, 11 members of the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), 11 from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), and 418 civilians were killed, while 1 Peshmerga, 5 Hashd, 20 ISF, and 38 civilians were injured. 2 of those occurred in Dohuk, 6 in Salahaddin, 10 in Anbar, 15 in Diyala, 15 in Kurdistan, 30 in Ninewa, 31 in Baghdad, and 400 in Kirkuk. The last figure came from a mass grave. If not for that there would have only been 45 fatalities during the week.

Casualties In Iraq By Province Nov 8-14, 2017

Dohuk 2 (1 Killed, 1 Wounded)

Salahaddin 6 (6 Wounded)

Anbar 10 (10 Wounded)

Diyala 15 (5 Killed, 10 Wounded)

KRG 15 (12 Killed, 3 Wounded)

Ninewa 30 (19 Killed, 11 Wounded)

Baghdad 31 (8 Killed, 23 Wounded)

Kirkuk 400 (400 Killed)

In Anbar, the Iraqi forces were attempting to liberate the final piece of territory under Islamic State control in the Rawa district in the west. Several towns were seized, and then there was a pause as there were no bridges left intact across the Euphrates to reach Rawa. The Islamic State is barely putting up a fight as most of its fighters have fled to elsewhere. All 7 incidents during the week were in that area including nine suicide bombers that were killed in three separate attacks, along with 3 car bombs destroyed in 2 incidents. 10 soldiers were wounded in two separate IED explosions.

There was just one incident in Babil. That occurred in Jurf al-Sakhr when a Hashd motorcade was fired upon. The insurgents are now carrying out at least one attack per week in the district despite there being no civilians there. They were all expelled by the security forces when the area was freed in 2014. The Hashd and provincial council have refused to allow any to return since then claiming they are a security risk. The real reason is that Jurf al-Sakhr sits astride one of the main routes from central and northern Iraq to the shrine cities in the south. The Iraqi forces do not want them attacked like they used to be, so they have decided to turn Jurf al-Sakhr into a military base, and keep all the residents out since it used to be IS’s main base in area.

Violence is down to just an average of two per day in Baghdad province. The second week of November was no different with just 15 incidents. The militants did try a car bomb, but it was discovered and dismantled.

IS is rebuilding in Diyala, but its attacks have gone up and down in the governorate. The first week of November there were 13 incidents, which went down to 9 the second week. There was some mortar fire in Muqtadiya district, which was different, but otherwise attacks remained low level with shootings and IEDs.

The insurgents are barely active in Kirkuk, but their legacy persists. A mass gave was discovered in Hawija, which was recently freed with 400 victims of the Islamic State. Second, four suicide bombers were killed and arrested in two separate incidents. Occasionally, IS attempts these types of attacks in Kirkuk, but otherwise there are barely any attacks.

There were three Turkish air strikes in Kurdistan targeting the PKK. All together they left 13 dead and 4 wounded, 6 of which were civilians, and the rest PKK members. Ankara is routinely bombing and shelling northern Kurdistan, but casualties are rarely reported.

IS is still trying to make their presence known in Ninewa. There were five incidents inside Mosul, four of which were IEDs going off that were left behind from the battle for the city. This is a major menace to people trying to move back. There were also reports of IS members being seen walking through the city. Combined together, that has led the security forces to launch a new security campaign inside Mosul consisting of neighborhoods being cordoned off and searched. There were various attacks throughout the province as well including a suicide bomber that hit a checkpoint in the south. In the northwest, there were two stories of Islamic State families being expelled from towns. Along the Syrian border, the Hashd created a security zone when they liberated the area and forced all the civilians out. They have not been allowed to return since then. The Hashd are interested in controlling the border to try to stop infiltration by IS, but also to gain access to Syria where many Pro-Iranian Hashd are fighting to support the Assad government. 

Salahaddin was another area where IS was trying to rebuild. Lately, they have been operating around the border with Diyala where almost all the 6 incidents occurred during the week. In the Shirqat district in the north, which was just freed, many people were heading back. The mayor said there was no electricity, but schools were opened and around 70% of the residents were home. Tribes however have decided to block IS families from going back. In Tuz Kharmato, Asaib Ahl Al-Haq raided the offices of the Turkmen Front and took away the manager. The party is non-sectarian, but has lost out to the Hashd in the city who promoted Shiite identity. Those groups now have the run of the city as the Peshmerga withdrew in the middle of October.

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	64	60	84
Oct 8-14	72	352	85
Oct 15-21	60	321	449
Oct 22-28	65	337	78
Oct 29-31	25	23	25
OCT	286	1,093	721
Nov 1-7	72	135	97
Nov 8-14	62	445	64

Violence By Province Nov 8-14, 2017

Province	Violence
Anbar	7 Incidents 10 Wounded 10 ISF 2 IEDs 9 Suicide Bombers Killed 3 Car Bombs Destroyed
Babil	1 Incident 1 Shooting
Baghdad	15 Incidents 8 Killed 1 ISF 7 Civilians 23 Wounded 23 Civilians 3 Shootings 7 IEDs 2 Sticky Bombs 1 Car Bomb Dismantled
Diyala	9 Incidents 5 Killed 2 ISF 3 Civilians 10 Wounded 10 Civilians 4 Shootings 4 IEDs 1 Grenade 2 Mortars
Dohuk	1 Incident 1 Killed 1 Civilian 1 Wounded 1 Civilian 1 Turkish Air Strike
Kirkuk	8 Incidents 400 Killed 400 Civilians 3 Shootings 2 IEDs 2 Grenades 1 Rockets 4 Suicide Bombers Killed/Arrested
KRG	2 Incidents 12 Killed 11 PKK 1 Civilian 3 Wounded 3 Civilians 2 Turkish Air Strikes
Ninewa	12 Incidents 19 Killed 5 Hashd 6 Civilians 8 ISF 11 Wounded 1 Civilian 3 Hashd 7 ISF 5 Shootings 6 IEDs 1 Suicide Bomber
Salahaddin	6 Incidents 6 Wounded 1 Peshmerga 2 Hashd 3 ISF 3 Shootings 3 IEDs 12 Suicide Bombers Killed
Wasit	1 Incident 1 IED dismantled

SOURCES

Agence France Presse, "Mass graves holding '400 Daesh victims' found in Iraq," 11/11/17

Al Alam, “Launch the liberation of Rumana area north of Qaim,” 11/8/17

Baghdad Post, "2 suicide bombers arrested in Kirkuk," 11/9/17

- "IMIS leader survives assassination attempt in Babel," 11/9/17

- “Many ISIS terrorists ‘still on the loose in Mosul: Official,” 11/14/17

Buratha News, "The 7th Army Division kills four suicide bombers who tried to infiltrate from Syria into Iraq," 11/11/17

Al Ghad Press, "Four Daesh were killed including two suicide bombers southwest Kirkuk," 11/13/17

- "Security forces thwarted an attack by a car bomb north of Qaim," 11/8/17

- “Tribes in Rabia expel Daesh families and confiscate their homes,” 11/10/17

Al Maalomah, "4 people dead and wounded by Turkish shelling east Kurdistan," 11/12/17

- “The Babil Council resolves the controversy over the return of 5,000 involved in the blood of Iraqis to Jurf al-Sakhr,” 11/13/17

- "The death of a Ninewa policeman by a mine explosion in west Mosul," 11/8/17

- "The martyrdom of a woman west Mosul," 11/9/17

- "One civilian was killed and another injured by Turkish air strikes near Dohuk," 11/8/17

- "Three soldiers were wounded in a sweep of a residential neighborhood west Anbar," 11/10/17

- "Two civilians killed in an armed attack in Mosul," 11/12/17

- "Two mortar shells fell in the center of the Muqtadiya district," 11/9/17

Al Mada, “The army is preparing to liberate Rawa and prevent the escape of Daash into the south,” 11/13/17

- “Daesh members appear in Mosul 5 months after liberation,” 11/14/17

Al Masalah, "An agricultural village shelled with mortars in Muqdadiya, northeast Diyala," 11/8/17

Mostafa, Mohamed, "Iraqi army kills 4 suicide bombers before crossing into Iraq from Syria," Iraqi News, 11/9/17

Mostafa, Nehal, "Army soldiers wounded in bomb blasts in western Anbar," Iraqi News, 11/10/17

- “Islamic State members flee western Anbar bastion toward Salahuddin,” Iraqi News, 11/12/17

- “Over 70% of displaced families return back to Shirqat: Mayor,” Iraqi News, 11/12/17

- "Twelve police personnel killed, injured in suicide attack, south of Mosul," Iraqi News, 11/12/17

NINA, "A Car Bomb Seized North Of Baghdad," 11/12/17

-"An engineer and a worker killed in an explosive device exploded near Al-Hurriya Bridge in central Mosul," 11/11/17

- "Security forces detonated two car bombs during the advance to liberate the district of Rawah west of Anbar," 11/13/17

- "Three Daesh, including a suicide bomber, were killed on the eastern border of Anbar," 11/13/17

Rudaw, "Dead and wounded following two bombings in the Ninewa province," 11/12/17

-"PKK fighters killed in Turkish bombing in Kurdistan: Local official," 11/13/17

Shafaaq News, "A child and a woman were injured in an explosion in Mosul," 11/9/17

- “The people expelled Daash families after withdrawal of the Peshmerga northwest of Mosul,” 11/9/17

Sotaliraq, “Asaib Ahl al-Haq raided the Turkmen Front in Tuz Kharmato,” 11/14/17

- “The popular crowd prevents displaced families from returning to western Mosul,” 12/12/17

UN High Commissioner for Refugees, “Mosul Weekly Protection Update (3-9 November 2017, 11/9/17