Shafaq News- Erbil

Iraq's security forces still lack the advanced surveillance technology the US-led coalition used to track militants, National Security Adviser Qasim al-Aboudi said on Tuesday, while the Kurdistan Region's interior minister warned that ISIS is stronger today than before 2014.

Both spoke at a panel on the second day of the Middle East Research Institute's MERI Forum 2026 in Erbil, two weeks after the coalition ended its military mission in Iraq.

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A Technology Gap

"The technology the [Global] Coalition has for surveying and tracking terrorists' movements, we still do not have," al-Aboudi said, adding that a plan to rearm all branches of the security forces is under study, and the shortfall will be addressed in the coming days.

According to Al-Aboudi, ISIS remains active in specific, identified areas and has sleeper cells, warning that other movements now presenting a conciliatory face could become a copy of ISIS if given the chance.

Regarding security forces readiness, he said that apart from some equipment and technology, Iraq's forces are fully prepared, noting that security has held since the US withdrawal, and coordination and intelligence-sharing with the coalition are continuing.

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Stronger Than Before 2014

Kurdistan Region Interior Minister Rebar Ahmed said the Coalition’s air support had been decisive in defeating ISIS, describing the demand for its withdrawal as more political than security driven.

“Iraq's forces still need the Coalition's help, not only against ISIS but also against cross-border and organized crime and drug trafficking, which does more damage to society than terrorism,” he said.

Ahmed revealed that support that security institutions used to receive has been cut off since the Coalition’s withdrawal, and Iraq now needs bilateral agreements for training, weapons, and intelligence.

"ISIS today is stronger than it was before 2014, and its ideological foundation remains," Ahmed said, warning that the group would re-emerge unless the conditions that feed it are addressed, including through better public services and respect for local communities.

Regarding ending weapons outside state control, Ahmed said the Coalition's withdrawal, particularly that of US forces, was conditional on ending this issue. “That is a major responsibility for the federal government, and without it the outlook for Iraq's security and stability will not be good.”

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