The Islamic State terror group is not making a comeback in Iraq following the joint security operation between Iraqi and Kurdish forces this week, a top U.S. commander said Thursday.
Gen. Joseph Votel, the head of the U.S. Central Command, was optimistic in his assessment of ongoing Iraqi-led security operations to stamp out the remnants of the terror organization also known as ISIS.
Iraqi security forces and Kurdish Peshmerga forces, backed by American and allied air power and heavy artillery, liberated the northern Iraqi city of Mosul last July. The northern Iraqi city had been the de facto capital for the terror group known as ISIS in Iraq since 2014. Since then, ISIS cells have gone underground in the country, returning to their terrorist tactics to battle local security forces.
While some remaining ISIS members are engaging in terroristic activity in parts of the country, the group itself remains in disarray, Gen. Votel said.
“We are certainly aware that as ISIS was pushed out of these areas and lost their ability to govern, they would return to some of their traditional terrorist tactics and we certainly see that in some localized areas,” Gen. Votel said.
When asked about whether Baghdad’s counterterrorism units had the ability to suppress the recent spate of terrorist attacks claimed by ISIS in remote areas of eastern Iraq, Gen. Votel said the Iraqi forces would be up to the task.
“I am not particularly concerned about that,” he said during a teleconference from command headquarters in Tampa. “This week’s very successful operation between the federal police and the Peshmerga is illustrative of this,” Gen. Votel added.
Iraqi and Kurdish troops, supported by the US-led coalition forces launched a joint military operation targeting remaining ISIS pockets hiding out near the town of Makhmour, southwest of Erbil, on Monday.
The operation was declared as a success by the Pentagon, with Iraqi military and Peshmerga units clearing the Makhmour Mountains of its remaining ISIS presence.
“Our partners fought valiantly today as they continue to remove remaining elements of a savage enemy from their country,” said Army Maj. Gen. James Jarrard, commander of Special Operations Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve.
“This action proves the enemy cannot hide. Our partners are well trained and they will continue to find [ISIS] terrorists wherever they are. We are proud to work alongside these highly professional and brave forces, who have sacrificed so much in this fight,” he said in a Defense Department statement issued on Tuesday.
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