Security forces (Asayish) in Sulaimani announced the arrest of 11 Islamic State (ISIS) suspects on Wednesday, accusing them of plotting to assassinate security officers in the Kurdistan Region.

In an official statement, the Asayish revealed that two ISIS groups were planning to target multiple security commanders and execute destructive actions in the Kurdistan Region. The statement also noted that three of the arrested individuals are ISIS emirs, indicating their high-ranking status within the organization.

The operations leading to these arrests were conducted in the provinces of Sulaimani and Halabja. This follows a separate joint operation by Iraqi security forces and Sulaimani Asayish on Monday, which resulted in the apprehension of 21 ISIS suspects.

ISIS, which seized control of large areas of Iraq in 2014, was declared territorially defeated in the country in 2017. Despite this, the group continues to carry out bombings, hit-and-run attacks, and abductions across several Iraqi provinces.

Since 2014, thousands of individuals have been detained across Iraq for suspected affiliations with extremist groups, including ISIS, and hundreds have been executed for their involvement.