Iraq Finds Underground ISIS Training Camp

Iraqi forces during an operation against ISIS remnants in Iraq. Iraq's Security Media Cell
Iraqi forces during an operation against ISIS remnants in Iraq. Iraq's Security Media Cell
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Iraq Finds Underground ISIS Training Camp

Iraqi forces during an operation against ISIS remnants in Iraq. Iraq's Security Media Cell
Iraqi forces during an operation against ISIS remnants in Iraq. Iraq's Security Media Cell

The Iraqi authorities announced Friday finding an underground ISIS training camp during the second day of the Tarmiyah operations north of Baghdad against the remnants of the terrorist organization.

“The Tarmiyah operation has achieved enormous results that would reflect positively on the security of the region in the coming days,” said Ali Jabouri, a commanding officer.

“The underground ISIS hideout included eight rooms and was used to hide terrorists and to train them on targeting Iraqi forces,” Jabouri explained.

Tarmiyah operation was launched on Thursday with the participation of brigades 42, 43 and 12, a joint force from the Baghdad Operations Command, the rapid reaction forces and federal police with Iraqi air force support.

It aims to target the remnants of ISIS, arrest wanted individuals, enhance security and stability, end security breaches, and protect the interests of citizens.

Since the operation started, Iraqi forces have found five ISIS hideouts, and arrested a number of wanted individuals and handed them over to the Baghdad Operations Command.

The Iraqi forces thwarted an ISIS attack south of Samarra.

The Popular Mobilization Forces said in a statement that a force from the 41st Brigade responded on Thursday evening to the attack of ISIS elements in the Tal al-Dhahab area.

Meanwhile, MP Mohammed al-Karbouli, member of the parliamentary security and defense committee, denounced “arbitrary arrest campaigns north of Baghdad.”

He said security forces have once again committed mistakes by arresting and terrorizing innocent residents.

Karbouli revealed that more than 50 young men were seized in a humiliating way in front of their families.

“Maybe the Sunnis are the weakest due to the financial and moral campaign launched against them,” he said.



Far-Right Israeli Minister Ben-Gvir Visits Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound

 Palestinians attend Eid al-Fitr holiday celebrations by the Dome of the Rock shrine in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City, Sunday, March 30, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians attend Eid al-Fitr holiday celebrations by the Dome of the Rock shrine in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City, Sunday, March 30, 2025. (AP)
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Far-Right Israeli Minister Ben-Gvir Visits Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound

 Palestinians attend Eid al-Fitr holiday celebrations by the Dome of the Rock shrine in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City, Sunday, March 30, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians attend Eid al-Fitr holiday celebrations by the Dome of the Rock shrine in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City, Sunday, March 30, 2025. (AP)

Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir visited the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem’s Old City on Wednesday, his spokesperson said, prompting strong condemnation from Jordan and Palestinian group Hamas.

The firebrand politician was visiting the site, which is sacred to Jews and Muslims, in occupied east Jerusalem after returning to the Israeli government last month following the resumption of the war against Hamas in Gaza.

Ben-Gvir had quit the cabinet in January in protest at the ceasefire agreement in the Palestinian territory.

Since the formation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government at the end of 2022, Ben-Gvir has made several trips to the Al-Aqsa compound, each time triggering international outcry.

In a statement, the Jordanian Foreign Ministry condemned Wednesday’s visit as a “storming” and “an unacceptable provocation.”

Hamas called it a “provocative and dangerous escalation,” saying the visit was “part of the ongoing genocide against our Palestinian people.”

“We call on our Palestinian people and our youth in the West Bank to escalate their confrontation... in defense of our land and our sanctities, foremost among them the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque,” it said in a statement.

The site is Islam’s third-holiest and a symbol of Palestinian national identity.

Known to Jews as the Temple Mount, it is also Judaism’s holiest place, revered as the site of the second temple destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD.

Under the status quo maintained by Israel, which has occupied east Jerusalem and its Old City since 1967, Jews and other non-Muslims are allowed to visit the compound during specified hours, but they are not permitted to pray there or display religious symbols.

Ben-Gvir’s spokesperson told AFP the minister “went there because the site was opened (for non-Muslims) after 13 days,” during which access was reserved for Muslims for the festival of Eid al-Fitr and the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

In recent years, growing numbers of Jewish ultranationalists have defied the rules, including Ben-Gvir, who publicly prayed there in 2023 and 2024.

The Israeli government has said repeatedly that it intends to uphold the status quo at the compound but Palestinian fears about its future have made it a flashpoint for violence.