A soldier of Iraqi army was killed and another injured Thursday night when militants named as "ISIS" fired Iraqi army brigade southwest of Daquq district of Kirkuk Northern Province.
Brigade 45 of Iraqi army deployed in the villages of Mora and Ban Shakh, southwest of daquq, were targeted by snipers around 11 pm and they responded intensively so confrontation lasted for a while with light guns, security sources in Daquq anonymously told KirkukNow.
The Iraqi army in cooperation with Iraqi federal police and pro-Shiite militia Popular Mobilization Forces PMF under the umbrella of Kirkuk Joint Operations Command are in charge of the security in the region.
Early March, Tens of ISIS hideouts destroyed and several militants killed in an air-land operation by Iraqi forces in three disputed areas. Following escalation of ISIS attacks in February killing over 15 members of Iraqi forces and tens injured, a wide range of operations launched in Khanaqin, Daquq and Duz Khurmatu disputed territories.
In Mid February, Iraqi minister of interior paid a visit to Daquq and Kirkuk security forces to put in place a tighter security plan. Photo by Iraqi ministry of interior.
Daquq district, southwest of Kirkuk is home for Kaka'i, or Yarsanism, a secretive monotheist spiritual religion which has not been officially recognized in the Iraqi constitution. Their villages are a target for extremist Islamic militants of ISIS whom accused Kak’is of being defectors.
Two weeks ago, nine Iraqi federal police were wounded by a mortar attack in Rokhana valley of Daquq district.
After ousting Saddam Hussein regime in 2003, article 140 of Iraqi constitution in 2005 was outlined as a framework for the determination of the fate of the disputed territories in the provinces of Kirkuk, Nineveh and Diyalah. The three-stage process requires the normalization of the areas, conducting a census, and holding a referendum to know the will of the people to join Baghdad federal government or Iraq's Kurdistan region government KRG. Up today, part of the first stage has been implemented.
