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ISIS Strikes ‘Baghdad Belt’

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi wears a military uniform of Popular Mobilization Forces during his visit to the PMF HQ in Baghdad, Iraq May 16, 2020. Iraqi Prime Minister Media Office/Handout via Reuters
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi wears a military uniform of Popular Mobilization Forces during his visit to the PMF HQ in Baghdad, Iraq May 16, 2020. Iraqi Prime Minister Media Office/Handout via Reuters
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ISIS Strikes ‘Baghdad Belt’

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi wears a military uniform of Popular Mobilization Forces during his visit to the PMF HQ in Baghdad, Iraq May 16, 2020. Iraqi Prime Minister Media Office/Handout via Reuters
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi wears a military uniform of Popular Mobilization Forces during his visit to the PMF HQ in Baghdad, Iraq May 16, 2020. Iraqi Prime Minister Media Office/Handout via Reuters

ISIS has continued to launch nighttime attacks in western and northern Iraq, reaching the Tarmiyah region which belongs to what is called the Baghdad belt.

The terror group branded the attacks as “Ramadan invasions,” named after Islam’s holy month of Ramadan.

In a rare show of force, the first of its kind in months, ISIS militants infiltrated a Tarmiyah village, located north of Baghdad, and kidnapped and slayed one of the security personnel positioned there.

This coincided with a series of operations launched by ISIS on Saturday in the Diyala and Salahuddin governorates and Samarra city. Published footage showed ISIS slaying four members of the same family in Samarra.

On Friday night, ISIS targeted a security checkpoint in northeastern Baghdad, causing casualties, according to security sources. Details about the casualties were not released.

Meanwhile in northern Diyala, the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) said a terrorist attack caused one death and 10 injuries.

The Iraqi army and the local Diyala Police, in eastern Iraq, launched a military operation south of Buhriz district to pursue ISIS operatives.

“The Diyala Operations Command, represented by the Iraqi Army's Fifth Infantry Division and the Diyala police, will conduct search operations in the southern Buhriz regions, implement arrest warrants for the wanted, and prosecute the remnants of the (ISIS) terrorist cells, as well as enhance security and stability there,” a security statement said.

Member of the parliamentary Security and Defense Committee MP Bader al-Ziyadi confirmed that, in the next few days, an expansive security operation to counter ISIS will be launched.

“There are steps that will be taken to eradicate these (ISIS) outposts and their sleeping cells from our regions,” Ziyadi asserted.

"Planned operations in the areas where terrorist groups emerged are awaiting the announcement of the zero hour for their launch, after all procedures for them have been completed,” Ziyadi noted, adding that army air power will participate in crushing the terrorist organization.

The MP also warned that those involved in harboring ISIS militants will be held accountable.

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Arab World

Houthi Charges of Espionage: A Tool to Intimidate, Control the Population

Houthis demonstrate in the center of the capital Sanaa against American and British strikes on their positions. (AP)
Houthis demonstrate in the center of the capital Sanaa against American and British strikes on their positions. (AP)
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Houthi Charges of Espionage: A Tool to Intimidate, Control the Population

Houthis demonstrate in the center of the capital Sanaa against American and British strikes on their positions. (AP)
Houthis demonstrate in the center of the capital Sanaa against American and British strikes on their positions. (AP)

The Houthi militia has recently released several individuals it had abducted for celebrating Yemen’s September Revolution. However, over the past few days, it has detained hundreds of residents in its stronghold of Saada, accusing them of espionage.

The campaign coincides with the airing of alleged confessions from a purported spy cell and the abduction of a former employee of the US Embassy in Yemen.

Local sources in Saada province, approximately 242 kilometers north of Sanaa, report that the Houthis have launched a widespread campaign of arrests targeting civilians. These individuals have been taken from their homes, workplaces, and businesses under allegations of collaborating with Western nations and Israel. Families of those detained have been warned to remain silent and refrain from discussing the arrests with the media or on social media platforms.

According to the sources, more than 300 individuals, including dozens of women, have been abducted across various districts in Saada. The arrests have also targeted relatives and associates of Othman Mujalli, a member of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, who hails from the region.

The sources suggest that the Houthis are detaining women as hostages to pressure their relatives, who may either be out of the militia’s reach or living outside Houthi-controlled areas. They also appear to be using the women to coerce confessions from male relatives. Last month, the Houthis accused Hamid Mujalli, Othman Mujalli’s brother, of engaging in espionage for Arab and Western nations for nearly two decades.

In a separate incident, the Houthis abducted a former employee of the US Embassy in Sanaa from his home on Monday without providing any explanation for their actions.

Release of Detainees

The Houthis recently released Sheikh Amin Rajeh, a tribal leader from Ibb province, after detaining him for four months. Several other individuals were also freed, none of whom had been formally charged during their detention. Rajeh, a member of the General People’s Congress Party, was one of many political activists, students, workers, and public employees abducted in September for celebrating Yemen’s September 26, 1962, revolution.

One of the released individuals, a shop owner, told Asharq Al-Awsat that he was unaware of the reason for his detention. He had been abducted in November, two months after the Houthis initiated a crackdown on those commemorating the revolution.

Alleged Spy Cell

Houthi-controlled media recently broadcast confessions from what they claimed was a newly uncovered spy cell. The group linked the cell to its broader narrative of “promised conquest and sacred jihad” against the West and Israel.

According to Houthi security officials, the alleged spy cell was working to compile a “target database,” monitor sites linked to missile forces and drones, and track specific military and security locations. They also claimed the cell had been observing the residences and movements of Houthi leaders.

In response, the Houthis issued warnings to residents, forbidding them from discussing or sharing information about militia-controlled sites, facilities, or the whereabouts of their leaders.

The Houthis’ actions reflect mounting concerns over potential strikes targeting their senior leadership, similar to the recent attacks on Hezbollah figures in Lebanon. Those fears come amid ongoing tensions with Israel, the United States, and the United Kingdom, following the Houthis’ assaults on international shipping lanes in the Red Sea and missile attacks on Israel.