Iraq detains senior ISIS figure linked to al-Baghdadi

Iraq detains senior ISIS figure linked to al-Baghdadi
2025-04-09 13:30

Shafaq News/ Iraqi security forces arrested an ISIS member with ties to the group’s former leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and al-Qaeda figure Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, three Iraqi security officials told Shafaq News on Wednesday.

The arrest, carried out in a residential district of southern Kirkuk, about 255 km north of Baghdad, followed months of surveillance and intelligence gathering, the officials said.

“This individual was a key operative under al-Zarqawi and later served under al-Baghdadi’s leadership within ISIS,” one of the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the operation.

The detainee, described by the sources as a “first-tier leader,” was apprehended inside a private residence. Security forces also seized classified documents allegedly in his possession, the officials added.

Authorities emphasized the arrest marks one of the most “significant blows” to the group’s leadership structure in recent months, although they declined to name the suspect.

ISIS, which seized swathes of Iraqi and Syrian territory in 2014, was militarily defeated in Iraq in 2017. However, remnants of the group continue to carry out low-level insurgency attacks, particularly in remote and disputed areas.

In the first quarter of 2025 alone, Iraqi security forces conducted dozens of joint operations against ISIS, killing 50 militants and arresting more than 40 others.

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