Northern Iraq (North and North Central Regions – including the KRG)
The Northern Region reported a total of 20 incidents during the reporting period, a slight reduction on last weeks figure and below the 2012 weekly average of 24. The reduction in incidents continues a general downward trend of violent incidents in the north since the major activity spikes in August and September. As is the norm, almost all incidents occurred in Ninawa province, with majority of incidents again centred on Mosul, which remains a critical hub for Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI). Two-thirds of attacks targeted ISF, predominantly using explosive devices or small arms; including seven small arms fire (SAF) attacks, nine Improvised explosive device (IED) detonations and two IED finds. The SAF attacks almost exclusively targeted ISF, whereas the IED and under vehicle IED (UVIED) attacks were less discriminate. In Tal Afar to the west of Mosul, an IED detonated close to a clinic without causing casualties; while in the border region with Syria an exchange of small arms with cigarette smugglers resulted in a soldier and two smugglers being killed. Concentrations of activity were also witnessed in the towns of Hamam al-Alil and Qayarah, both situated in the Tigris River Valley. ISF conducted a number of successful operations in the Mosul area, including the arrest of several AQI members and the discovery of a substantial IED production facility in the east of Mosul.
The North Central Region reported a total of 20 incidents during the reporting period, significantly below the current 2012 weekly average of 35 and a reduction on last weeks figure. In Kirkuk and Diyala, ISF operations resulted in the apprehension of a number of terrorist suspects. In Salah al-Din, incidents were spread along the Tigris River Valley, concentrating around the major population centres including but not restricted to Shirqat, Bayji, Tikrit and Samarra. The Tigris River Valley, Baqubah and Kirkuk city were the foci of incidents for the period, including IEDs, SAF and indirect fire (IDF). In keeping with the 2012 trend in the North Central region, the greatest proportion of attacks target ISF and Iraqi government officials. The director of Tikrit Tasfirat prison, Brigadier Leith Sakmani, was arrested for dereliction of duty while travelling from Erbil to Kirkuk. The prison has suffered from a number of escape attempts and riots over the preceding months. The most significant incident was the large-scale prison-break on 28 September, when 102 prisoners - including 47 members of AQI on death row - escaped. Elsewhere, the newly formed Tigris Operations Command based in Kirkuk city, subsumed Salah al-Din province under its area of responsibility this week, a move intended to better coordinated security forces across the North Central Region.
Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) – No significant incidents were reported during the period in the three provinces that comprise the KRG (Dahuk,Erbil and Sulaymaniyah). The Turkish Air Force was however reported to have attacked targets in the northern border area of Erbil province, likely directed against Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) camps in the area.
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