Ten “terrorists” arrested in Nineveh receive harsh sentences

Shafaq News/ Iraqi judicial authorities issued death and life imprisonment sentences against ten “terrorists” arrested by the Federal Intelligence and Investigation Agency in Nineveh province.

The Iraqi Ministry of Interior said this in a statement that this development followed interrogations in which the suspects were confronted with concrete evidence. They confessed to being affiliated with ISIS terrorist groups and to committing numerous acts of terrorism in the province in 2014, including attacks on security forces and the killings of innocent civilians.

Despite its territorial defeat in 2017, ISIS maintains a significant presence in Iraq through sleeper cells that engage in guerrilla warfare, assassinations, kidnappings, and extortion to destabilize the region. They blend into local populations, making them challenging to detect.

Since the beginning of 2024, Iraqi forces have ramped up counter-terrorism operations across several provinces, including Saladin, Kirkuk, Diyala, and Al-Anbar. These efforts have led to the destruction of numerous hideouts, the capture of ISIS members, and the elimination of several high-ranking leaders.

Military officials confirmed to Shafaq News that ISIS is no longer capable of conducting large-scale operations, but isolated elements are exploiting security gaps to reestablish a presenceintheregion.