BAGHDAD (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 06th June, 2021) The Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) have launched a joint operation with the Peshmerga forces of autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan to eliminate affiliates of the Islamic State terrorist group (banned in Russia) in the north of the Saladin province, a CTS spokesman told Sputnik on Sunday.
"The operation is conducted based on the information obtained by the Counter-Terrorism Service's intelligence and the Peshmerga's tactical data, as well as under the orders from the commander-in-chief of the armed forces to provide security of the territories between the autonomy and the center," Sabah Numan said.
According to the spokesman, the operation aims to immobilize and eliminate the terrorists. Due to the specificity of� local terrain, the most important task will be the destruction of caves and other places that can be used for cover.
Numan said that five caves and four additional objects of terrorist infrastructure have been already destroyed by airstrikes in the first hours of the operation.
In late 2017, Iraq declared a victory over the IS, but the army, with the support of the US-led coalition and militia units, still conduct offensives against terrorists and sleeper cells that are active in different parts of the country.
