Erbil Asayish arrest ISIS cell from Hawl camp
ERBIL, KRI, Iraq (North Press) – The Kurdistan Region Security Council announced on Monday that it arrested several members of two linked ISIS cells, of which two previously resided in northern Syria’s Hawl camp.
The council stated that, in December 2022, Erbil’s security forces (Asayish) prevented two separate attacks by two terrorist cells in the city of Erbil.
According to the statement, the two cells consisted of two ISIS members each, led by an ISIS commander.
One cell comprised Hamza Iyad, also known as Sayaf al-Qurayshi, and Muhajer Ahmad al-Azawi, aka Abu Jaafar. They were arrested on Dec. 23, 2022. At the time of their arrest, al-Qurashyi, with Abu Jaafar’s assistance, was planning a suicide attack on the local Anti-Terrorism Units ahead of the new year.
The duo were also planning to attack the Asayish headquarters in the Christian-majority Ankawa neighborhood of Erbil with a remotely-detonated car bomb.
The second network consisted of Musa Ismail Alwan Ismail, aka Yakub, and a man identified by the initials M.A.H, both of which previously resided in Hawl camp and were involved in the murder of multiple camp residents, the council stated.
The statement did not clarify how the ISIS militants were able to escape al-Hawl camp into Kurdistan Region. However, they likely crossed with Iraqi refugees repatriated from the camp by the Iraqi government.
The second network – which was in contact with the ISIS leadership – arrived in Erbil in 2022 and was planning to conduct attacks and assassinations in the city, the statement reads.