IED explosion kills three Peshmerga forces during patrol in northern Iraq

An improvised explosive device (IED) attack has killed two senior Kurdish Peshmerga commanders and a sergeant during a joint patrol with Iraqi army forces in Tuz Khurmatu, a restive district in Iraq's Salahaddin province, Iraqi army and authorities in the northern Kurdistan region said.   

The attack, which occurred on Sunday morning, also injured three Iraqi soldiers, according to the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). Although no group has claimed responsibility yet,  the Islamic State (IS) has been blamed for the blast.  

In a statement, the ministry said the IED struck a convoy of vehicles at approximately 09:00 local time, targeting senior officers in the joint Kurdish-Iraqi patrol. Among those killed were Colonel Saman Sabir Sulaiman, commander of the Third Battalion of the First Brigade in the joint forces, Colonel Mohammed Raza Karim of the Iraqi Army’s Ninth Division, and Sergeant Sharif Ahmed Mohammed Amin. Three other soldiers were also injured. 

Brigadier General Dler Mahmoud of the KRG’s 17th Infantry Brigade told The New Arab that IS militants are exploiting security gaps in the region to launch attacks using IEDs.

Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani condemned the attack and expressed condolences to the victims' families in a statement posted on X.

"This terrorist act underscores that terrorism remains a serious and direct threat, endangering the stability and security of Iraq, the Kurdistan Region, and the region as a whole," he wrote.

Barzani called for enhanced coordination between Kurdish and Iraqi forces to address ongoing security challenges in disputed territories.

Despite IS's territorial defeat in Iraq in 2017, the group continues to pose a significant threat, particularly in areas with a security vacuum between Kurdish and Iraqi control. Salahaddin, Kirkuk, Diyala, and Nineveh provinces remain hotspots for militant activity. Tuz Khurmatu, a town located 65 kilometers south of Kirkuk, has been a focal point for ethnic and sectarian tensions, further complicating security efforts.

In early October, an IS ambush in Kirkuk resulted in the deaths of four Iraqi soldiers, underscoring the group's ability to launch deadly attacks. On Saturday, Iraqi airstrikes killed at least four IS fighters in Kirkuk province as part of ongoing operations to target militant hideouts.

IS proclaimed itself as a 'caliphate' following a meteoric rise in Iraq and Syria in 2014 that saw it conquer vast swathes of territory.

The US-led coalition helped defeat IS in Iraq in 2017 and Syria two years later, but sleeper cells of the extremist group still carry out attacks in both countries.

The military mission of the US-led coalition in Iraq is set to conclude by September 2025, transitioning to a bilateral security arrangement between the United States and Iraq.

This was announced in a joint statement from both nations in September  and marks a significant change in the region’s security dynamic after more than a decade of US military involvement.

Currently, the United States maintains around 2,500 troops in Iraq, alongside approximately 900 in Syria. These forces are part of coalition formed in 2014 to combat the IS group

The latest attack highlights the urgent need for unified and sustained counter-terrorism efforts to stabilize Iraq's most vulnerable regions. Both Iraqi and Kurdish forces, often supported by the US-led coalition, have vowed to continue operations aimed at eliminating IS remnants.