Weekly Security Update

Activity across the remaining northern provinces changed little over the week.  The number of incidents in Kirkuk fell by almost two thirds compared to the previous week possibly due to a dearth in resources as a result of interdiction operations by the ISF after a spate of attacks in Kirkuk, which started 18 Feb.  Sala-al-Din saw continued Sunni insurgent activity manifested in a series of low yield IED strikes in the west of the province and predominantly in those urban areas straddling the Tigris Valley.

After Baghdad and Nineveh, Diyala was the most violent province this week with a majority of incidents reported in the provincial capital, Baqubah. After the Suicide VBIED attack against the Governor's residence last week (a particularly bold attack followed up with a ground assault) insurgent groups this week would appear to have opted for a less manpower intensive modes of attack, preferring instead to lay multiple IEDs along arterial routes in the province as a means of pressing home their recent campaign whilst simultaneously conserving resources and manpower.

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At the wider provincial level Al-Anbar continues to have a low level of incidences, however there was a localised spike in activity along the Syria / Iraq border with the ambush of the convoy returning Syrian army soldiers to Syria.  No group has claimed the attack however the area remains heavily dominated by Sunni tribes well known to actively sympathise with the Syrian opposition, who most likely have exploited an open opportunity to attack a vulnerable target.  This ties in with the previous weeks reporting of a much-increased level of smuggling supplies to rebel units along the border indicating that the resources to mount a well-planned attack would have most certainly been place.  Furthermore, the focus of Sunni insurgent groups has shifted toward the border areas recently after their attempts to monopolise the protest movement failed and ISF increased their tempo of operations in and around the major urban areas in Al-Anbar.