Iraq kills top Islamic State commander, a week after deadly Baghdad blasts
- The death of Abu Yasar al-Issawi, the Isis chief in Iraq, was announced on Twitter by the country’s prime minister
- At least 32 people died and over 100 were injured in twin suicide bombings at a busy open-air market in Baghdad last week
Iraqi security forces have killed a senior commander of the Islamic State group, the prime minister said on Thursday, a week after the rare, twin suicide bombing by Isis militants killed dozens in Baghdad.
The Islamic State group had quickly claimed responsibility for the January 21 blasts at a busy open-air market in the Iraqi capital. At least 32 people were killed and more than 100 were wounded.
Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi tweeted on Thursday that an “intelligence-led” operation in northern Iraq killed 39-year-old Abu Yasar al-Issawi, deputy commander and Isis chief in Iraq.
The country’s security forces have faced mounting pressure after the January 21 attack in central Baghdad, with many saying the attack – the first to strike the Iraqi capital by the militant group in three years – was a failure of Iraq’s intelligence.
“I gave my word to pursue the Daesh terrorists, we gave them a thundering response,” al-Kadhimi said, referring to Isis by its Arabic acronym.
Al-Issawi, born Jabbar al-Issawi, was killed in an operation west of the city of Kirkuk where Isis militants are known to still have a presence.
The operation was lead by Iraq’s elite Counterterrorism Service, in cooperation with Iraqi intelligence. Iraqi forces clashed with Isis militants and al-Issawi was killed in the firefight, the counterterrorism agency said on its Facebook page.
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The Baghdad attack also came as the US-led coalition forges ahead with plans to withdraw troops from the country. US troops have gradually withdrawn from bases across Iraq to consolidate in Baghdad and the Ain al-Asad airbase in Anbar.
However, Iraq remains heavily reliant on US weaponry and surveillance technology and expertise to root out Isis presence across the country’s north and the vast western desert.
