Clashes in Tikrit a week after its liberation from ISIS

Clashes took place between Iraqi security forces and the Islamic State (ISIS) in Tikrit, the interior ministry announced yesterday.

The unrest comes a week after the city was liberated from ISIS’s grip, Al-Arab Al-Yawm reported.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar Al-Abadi announced on 31 March that the Iraqi forces had liberated Tikrit Province, 160 kilometres north of Baghdad, from ISIS, but his Interior Minister Mohamed Al-Ghabban said there were still some ISIS militias hiding in several areas.

On Tuesday, the Iraqi security forces received information about two groups of ISIS members hiding in different places. According to interior ministry’s statement, one group consisted of eight and the other consisted of 15 members. Both were hiding in Al-Qadisiyyah neighbourhood in the north of Tikrit.

The statement added: “The anti-terror apparatus clashed with ISIS. A number of the terrorists, most of them had explosive belts on their waists, were killed.”

Iraqi forces, including the army and police, in addition to popular militias started on 2 March a fierce war to liberate Tikrit. A US-led coalition also targeted ISIS positions from the air.