Iraqi warplanes target ISIS hideouts in Kirkuk
Shafaq News- Baghdad
F-16 fighter jets carried out three airstrikes on the remaining ISIS hideouts in Kirkuk province, northern Iraq, on Sunday, the Joint Operations Command (JOC) said.
The renewed air campaign followed a ground operation launched to inspect sites struck on July 4. During the search, Iraqi forces came under attack. The clash killed one ISIS militant and a first lieutenant from the Counter-Terrorism Service.
The results of the operation and an assessment of militant losses will be announced after inspection and evaluation teams complete their work, the JOC noted.
Despite its territorial defeat in 2017, ISIS remains active in Iraq, operating as an insurgent network in remote desert and rural areas, particularly in Diyala, Kirkuk, Saladin, and Al-Anbar. In the first half of 2026, Iraqi security forces dismantled four ISIS cells, carried out about 80 preemptive operations, and issued 479 arrest warrants under the country's Anti-Terrorism Law, according to the Interior Ministry.
Read more: On ISIS defeat anniversary, Iraq confronts a reawakening insurgency
