ISIS finance chief killed in joint coalition raid

Islamic State (ISIS) finance and logistics chief Abu Obaida was killed in a joint Peshmerga and US-led coalition raid on Saturday, according to the head of Peshmerga forces in Makhmour, Sirwan Barzani.

Barzani told Rudaw the coalition forces killed two more ISIS members around Mount Qarachogh on Sunday.

Peshmerga forces carried out the raids in coordination with US-led coalition warplanes to trace the whereabouts of ISIS remnants around Mount Qarachogh.

Barzani told Rudaw on Saturday the operation began around 6pm. Three ISIS militants were killed.

Coalition warplanes backed the operation, providing aerial support and targeting the group’s hideouts.

Mount Qarachogh lies near the town of Makhmour, around 60 kilometers southwest of Erbil.

Peshmerga have been stationed on the mountain since pulling out of Makhmour itself in the wake of the October 16 events, when Kurdish forces withdrew from the disputed or Kurdistani areas claimed by both Baghdad and Erbil.

Although the Iraqi government declared the defeat of ISIS in December 2017, there have been sporadic military confrontations between ISIS remnants and Iraqi Security Forces, including the Kurdish Peshmerga — around Makhmour and in the Hamrin mountains in Saladin province.

Source: punchng