Security In Iraq, Apr 8-14, 2018

After a major dip in violence in the first week of April the Islamic State was back to work from April 8-14, 2018. Incidents were back to what they have been for most of the year. There was also on going fighting between Turkey and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in northern Kurdistan.

There were 64 incidents during the second week of April. That was within the yearly mean of 60-70 attacks per week. There was 1 incident in Babil, 1 in Dohuk, 2 in Kurdistan, 5 in Irbil, 6 in Anbar, 8 in Baghdad, 8 in Salahaddin, 9 in Ninewa, 10 in Kirkuk, and 14 in Diyala.

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

Babil 1

Dohuk 1

Kurdistan 2

Irbil 5

Anbar 6

Baghdad 8

Salahaddin 8

Ninewa 9

Kirkuk 10

Diyala 14

Casualties In Iraq By Province Apr 8-14, 2018

Babil 2 (2 Wounded)

Dohuk 3 (3 Killed)

Kurdistan 7 (7 Killed)

Baghdad 8 (3 Killed, 5 Wounded)

Kirkuk 11 (7 Killed, 4 Wounded)

Diyala 15 (5 Killed, 10 Wounded)

Anbar 30 (5 Killed, 25 Wounded)

Irbil 36 (27 Killed, 9 Wounded)

Salahaddin 43 (16 Killed, 27 Wounded)

Ninewa 103 (102 Killed, 1 Wounded)

There were 175 fatalities and 83 wounded during the week. 100 bodies were found in 2 mass graves in Ninewa leaving 75 violent deaths. There were 2 casualties in Babil, 3 in Dohuk, 7 in Kurdistan, 8 in Baghdad, 11 in Kirkuk, 15 in Diyala, 30 in Anbar, 36 in Irbil, 43 in Salahaddin, and 103 in Ninewa. The dead consisted of 2 Hashd al-Shaabi, 6 members of the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), 7 PKK members, 27 Turkish soldiers, and 133 civilians, along with 9 Turkish soldiers, 10 Hashd, 22 ISF, and 42 civilian injured.

The number of incidents remained very low in Anbar, 6, but the type has changed. Two suicide bombers hit the headquarters of the Solution List in the Hit District leaving 3 soldiers dead and 13 civilians and ISF wounded along with one candidate. Several politicians have been attacked since then across central Iraq as campaigning for the May elections has taken off. Four suicide bombers also attacked the Iraqi forces in Haditha. Three were killed, but one got through killing 2 ISF and wounding 7. Almost all the attacks in recent weeks have been in the middle of the province, while beforehand they tended to be along the Syrian border. Government forces conducted two sweeps though Anbar during the week. There was one in Hit in the center, and one in Garma in the west.

For the fifth week there were hardly any incidents in Baghdad. There were just 5 reported from April 8-14. During the first three months of the year there were an average of 20 incidents per week. 2 suicide bombers were intercepted in Tarmiya in the outer north of the province, but otherwise there was the usual mix of IEDs and shootings. There was heightened security in the capital due to an annual pilgrimage, but it appeared that the Islamic State shifted its focus to other parts of the country beforehand.

Diyala continued to be a center of insurgent activity. It had the most incidents during the week with 14. That included an ambush of the Hashd, and a judge being killed by an IED targeting his motorcade. Officials were still warning that IS is moving back and forth along the Diyala-Salahaddin border. There were two clearing operations as well, one in the east and one in the west.

Kirkuk was another area where militants were making a comeback. IS is attempting to assert control over the rural south in the governorate. It assassinated a man accused of working with the government there, burned houses in three villages, attacked another, and fired rockets at a security base there as well. In response, the security forces went through part of the Hawija district once again. Part of the problem in Kirkuk is that there are spaces in between the Kurdish and federal forces, and those open areas are being exploited by the insurgents. There has been a constant back and forth in the media in recent weeks about whether the Peshmerga will be allowed back into those places or not. So far nothing has happened.

The PKK and Turkish forces were still battling it out in northern Irbil. Turkish airstrikes were responsible for the deaths of 7 PKK fighters and 3 civilians. The PKK retaliated with several attacks that left 27 Turkish Soldiers dead and 9 others wounded. Turkey made an incursion into Irbil almost a month ago and seems determined to set up camp and stay there in Ankara’s latest attempt to root out the Kurdish group.

Iran is also carrying out a low-level assassination campaign against Iranian Kurdish parties in Irbil. During the week, a member of the Kurdish Freedom Party escaped a shooting in Irbil city. Two members of another Kurdish party were killed earlier in the year.

Violence was still at a low level in Ninewa. There were just 9 incidents. Three of those were along the Syrian border where IS elements are still trying to infiltrate. One of those included killing a suicide bomber who tried to attack a checkpoint. IS also attempted to assassinate a Hashd commander with an IED on his motorcade in Tal Afar.

Salahaddin is another province where IS has changed the nature of its operations. During the week there were two attacks upon checkpoints as well as a Hashd training center. An IED also hit a funeral procession killing 10 and wounding 14, which accounted for the high casualty figure, which stood at 43 total. There was a security operation in Shirqat, which is one of the main areas where the insurgents are operating out of.

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	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	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	339
Apr 1-7	40	174	29
Apr 8-14	64	175	83

Violence By Province Apr 8-14, 2018

Province	Violence
Anbar	6 Incidents 5 Killed 5 ISF 25 Wounded 11 Civilians 14 ISF 1 IED 1 Sticky Bomb 3 Suicide Bombers 4 Suicide Bombers Killed
Babil	1 Incident 2 Wounded 2 Hashd 1 IED
Baghdad	8 Incidents 3 Killed 3 Civilians 5 Wounded 1 ISF 4 Civilians 4 Shootings 2 IEDs 2 Suicide Bombers Killed
Diyala	14 Incidents 5 Killed 1 Hashd 4 Civilians 10 Wounded 2 ISF 8 Civilians 4 Shootings 5 IEDs 1 Sticky Bomb 1 Motorcycle Bomb Destroyed
Dohuk	1 Incident 3 Killed 3 Civilians 1 Turkish Air Strike
Irbil	5 Incidents 27 Killed 27 Turkish Soldiers 9 Wounded 9 Turkish Soldiers 2 Shootings 1 Turkish Air Strike
Kirkuk	10 Incidents 7 Killed 1 Hashd 6 Civilians 4 Wounded 4 ISF 4 Shootings 1 Rocket
Kurdistan	5 Incidents 127 Killed 56 ISF 71 Civilians 4 Wounded 4 Civilians 1 Shooting 1 IED
Ninewa	9 Incidents 102 Killed 1 ISF 101 Civilians 1 Wounded 1 ISF 3 Shootings 3 IEDs 1 Suicide Bomber Killed
Salahaddin	8 Incidents 16 Killed 16 Civilians 27 Wounded 8 Hashd 19 Civilians 4 Shootings 3 IEDs

SOURCES

Agence France Presse, "Four killed in suicide attack on Iraq party headquarters," Agence France Presse, 4/8/18

AIN, "Conducting extensive searches in Mujahid in Hawija," 4/8/18

- "A security operation to search Zawiya and arrest suspects in al-Shirqat," 4/8/18

Anadolu Post, "7 PKK terrorists 'neutralized' in N. Iraq, SE Turkey," 4/10/18

Baghdad Post, "Gov't launches military operation in Diyala to oust ISIS sleeper cells," 4/8/18

- "Military to hunt down ISIS cells east of Diyala - Security officials," 4/9/18

Bas News, "Turkish Airstrikes Kill Three Brothers in Kurdistan," 4/14/18

Buratha News, "The death of the vice president of the Diyala Court of Appeal caused by injuries sustained yesterday night," 4/14/18

- "PKK: Eight Turkish soldiers killed and wounded north Irbil," 4/14/18

Ebraheem, Mohammed, “Iraq denies talks with Kurdistan over Peshmerga redeployment in disputed areas,” Iraqi News, 4/11/18

- "Iraq thwarts Islamic State's plot to explode ancient citadel in Nineveh," Iraqi News, 4/11/18

- "Iraqi troops kill seven Islamic State militants in Anbar," Iraqi News, 4/8/18

- "Parliamentary hopeful injured in suicide attack against party's HQ in Anbar," Iraqi News, 4/8/18

- "Six Iraqi soldiers injured as suicide bomber blows himself up in Anbar," Iraqi News, 4/8/18

Al Forat, "Implementation of a security operation from east Anbar to Baghdad belt," 4/11/18

Al Ghad Press, "The arrival of army units to support the people of Muhaishat Salahaddin," 4/10/18

- “Warnings of a dangerous movement of Daesh in 14 villages between the borders of Diyala and Salahaddin,” 4/10/18

Hath al-Youm, "A leader of the popular crowd survives an assassination attempt in western Mosul," 4/13/18

Iraq News App, "The popular crowd foils a Daeash attack on the Syrian border," 4/11/18

Mostafa, Mohamed, "Maas grave with remains of 60 civilians found in Iraq's Mosul," Iraqi News, 4/11/18

- "New mass grave found in Iraq's western Mosul," Iraqi News, 4/9/18

Mostafa, Nehal, "4 paramilitary personnel injured as Islamic State attack training facility , south of Tikrit," Iraqi News, 4/12/18

- "Paramilitary personnel slaughtered in ambush by Islamic State, northeast of Baquba," Iraqi News, 4/14/18

- "Two suicide bombers killed in attempt to attack visitors of Shia Imam's shrine in Baghdad," Iraqi News, 4/11/18

- "Update: 24 people killed, injured as explosives, planted in grave, go off, north of Salahuddin," Iraqi News, 4/12/18

NINA, "2 Houses Razed, 3 Burned By Daesh Militants South And West Of Kirkuk," 4/12/18

- "The Army Repulse An Attack To Daesh Militants And Killed 5 Of Them, West Of Mosul," 4/12/18

- "Four civilians were killed in a village west of Kirkuk,"4/12/18

- “Kurdish MP: There Are Consultations Between KRG And Baghdad To Return Peshmerga To The Disputed Areas,” 4/10/18

- "A Missile Attack On A Security Headquarters In Central Hawija," 4/12/18

- "The number of victims in Canaan Diyala has risen to five injured," 4/13/18

Shafaaq News, “Daash causes the evacuation of areas in south Kirkuk,” 4/11/18

- "Killing and wounding 11 Turkish soldiers within the borders of Kurdistan," 4/11/18

Sotaliraq, "Iraqi forces thwart suicide attack west of Mosul," 4/11/18

Al Sumaria, "An Iranian Kurdish official survives an assassination attempt in Irbil," 4/12/18

- "Kurdish rebels announce the killing of 19 Turkish soldiers north Irbil," 4/12/18

- "A man was killed in front of his family in an armed attack southwest Kirkuk," 4/12/18

Xinhua, "At least 2 security members killed in suicide attack in Iraq," 4/9/18

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