Islamic State insurgency in Iraq (2017–present)

This article is about the insurgency in Iraq after the defeat of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. For the previous ISIL insurgency after the withdrawal of US troops in 2011, see Iraqi insurgency (2011–2013). For the insurgency in Iraq after the US invasion in 2003, see Iraqi insurgency (2003–2011).

ISIL insurgency in Iraq (2017–present)
Part of the Iraqi conflict (2003–present)
Fighters of a self-defense group in northeastern Iraq in June 2018. ISIL still has a presence in remote areas of the country, often attacking small villages and forcing the locals to fight or flee.
Date 9 December 2017 – present (7 years, 2 weeks and 5 days) Location Western and northern Iraq Status Ongoing
Belligerents
Iraqi Government Iraqi Federal Police Iraqi Armed Forces Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) Pro-Government Tribes (ar) Iraqi Turkmen Front Rojava (cross-border cooperation since May 2018) CJTF-OIR United States United Kingdom Germany France Italy Supported by: Iran Qatar Egypt Kurdistan Region KDP Peshmerga Supported by: Netherlands	Islamic State Wilayat al-Iraq (since mid-2018) White Flags
Commanders and leaders
Barham Salih (Commander-in-chief) Mustafa Al-Kadhimi Adil Abdul-Mahdi Haidar al-Abadi Fuad Masum Falih Alfayyadh Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis † Qais Khazali Hadi al-Amiri Ali Khamenei Hassan Rouhani Qasem Soleimani † Joe Biden Donald Trump Lt. Gen. Paul LaCamera Masoud Barzani Maj. Gen. Sirwan Barzani	Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurashi Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi † Abu Hamza al-Qurashi Abu Fatima al-Jaheishi Abu Yusaf Abu Ahmad al-Alwani Abu Muhammad al-Jazrawi Sami Jasim Muhammad al-Jaburi Zulfi Hoxha Bajro Ikanović Ahlam al-Nasr Hiwa Chor Assi al-Qawali (POW)
Units involved
Iraq Iraqi Armed Forces Iraqi Army Iraqi Special Operations Forces Iraqi Air Force Popular Mobilization Forces Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq Kata'ib Hezbollah Badr Organization 21st Brigade Liwa Ali al-Akbar Iraqi Federal Police CJTF-OIR United States U.S. Army U.S. Marine Corps U.S. Air Force Germany Bundeswehr France French Army Ukraine Kurdistan Peshmerga	Islamic State Military of ISIL
Strength
17,000 - 20,000+Iraq Iraqi Armed Forces: 168,000 (plus 150,000 Popular Mobilization Forces) United States: 5,000 soldiers and 150 Marines United Kingdom: 400	Islamic State: 15,500–17,100 (2018) White Flags: 500–1,000
Casualties and losses
Unknown 18 killed, 2 HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters crashed	Unknown killed, 1,280+ captured (as of June 2020)

The ISIL insurgency in Iraq is an ongoing low-intensity insurgency that began in late 2017 after the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) lost territorial control in the War in Iraq of 2013 to 2017. ISIL and allied White Flags fought the Iraqi military (largely backed by the United States and other countries conducting airstrikes against ISIL) and allied paramilitary forces (largely backed by Iran).

Context

The insurgency is a direct continuation of the War in Iraq from 2013 to 2017, with ISIL continuing armed opposition against the Shia-led Iraqi Government. Along with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), other insurgents fighting the government include a group known as the White Flags which is reportedly composed of former ISIL members and Kurdish rebels and is believed by the government of Iraq to be part of Ansar al-Islam and possibly affiliated with al-Qaeda. The group operates mostly in the Kirkuk Governorate and has used an assortment of guerilla tactics against government forces. In September 2017, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIL, called on ISIL supporters around the world to launch attacks on Western news media and continued in his message the ISIL must focus on combating the two-pronged attack on the Muslim Ummah; these statements marked a departure from previous rhetoric which was focused on the state building of ISIL and heralded a shift in ISIL's strategy toward a classical insurgency.

Course of the insurgency

Since ISIL's loss of all territory in Iraq in late 2017 which was declared as Iraq's victory over ISIL and widely seen as an end to the war, and declared as such by Iraq's Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi, multiple incidents of violence have occurred being carried out by the conflicting sides, in spite of Iraq's declaration of victory over ISIL the group is widely seen as far from gone and continues to retain a presence throughout Iraq, and still capable of carrying out attacks and skirmishes with pro-government forces. ISIL has been waging a guerrilla war with a strong presence in the governorates of Kirkuk, Diyala, Saladin, and Sulaymaniyah, with local forces largely ill-equipped and inexperienced, ISIL has also taken advantage of the areas rough terrain to carry out operations. ISIL has also made a notable presence in the cities of Kirkuk, Hawija and Tuz Khurmato and has carried out attacks at night in rural areas.

ISIL fighters also reportedly move through villages during the day without interference from security forces, and locals have been asked by ISIL to give fighters food and give information on the whereabouts of Iraqi personnel, locals have also stated that ISIL fighters will frequently enter into Mosques and ask for Zakat to fund the insurgency. Among ISIL's operations include assassinations, kidnappings, raids and ambushes.

According to the Pentagon, as of fall 2018 ISIL was still stronger than it was between 2006–2007, when the group declared the Islamic State of Iraq during its incarnation as al-Qaeda in Iraq, citing a UN report which claimed that ISIL still had 20,000–30,000 fighters in Syria and Iraq. That claim of strength was simultaneously tempered though, with the Pentagon saying that ISIL had lost all of its territory and fighters were scattered, making them much less of a threat. The Pentagon predicted that ISIL will lose strength because of their dispersion in a way similar to what happened to al-Qaeda, while also warning that ISIL is still in a position to make a comeback.

Following ISIL's defeat they have been greatly weakened and violence in Iraq has been sharply reduced in 2018. 95 people lost their lives during the month of May, the lowest figure in 10 years.

Timeline

2018

January–April

Between January and February 2018, Iraqi security forces and Peshmerga clashed with the White Flags around parts of the Kirkuk and Saladin governorates for control of oil fields which the Iraqi government claims the group's priority is. The Iraqi government said in the clashes the composition of the White Flag's fighters are ISIL members and individuals linked to the Kurdish mafia, the government also alleges that the Kurdistan Region allowed oil theft to occur in the area while it was under their control and enabled ISIL for their own interests.

In March 2018, in two separate attacks ISIL reportedly killed 10 individuals including a pro-government Sunni tribal Sheikh along with his son and guests at his house in the town of Al-Shirqat south of Mosul, in the other attack ISIL killed 5 individuals from the same family whom were Iraqi Turkmen and Shia at a fake checkpoint set up by the group posing as Iraqi security forces.

• 22 March 2018 - Six individuals and 15 others were at a checkpoint set up by ISIL the group killed six individuals and injured 15 others from the Iraqi Turkmen minority on their way to Erbil from Baghdad between Tuz Khurmato and Daquq to celebrate Nowruz. The attack was condemned by Turkey and Zowaa claimed one of their MPs was present during the attack but managed to escape unharmed.
• 2 April 2018 - PMF Major General named Ali Khalifa was killed in an operation around Tuz Khurmato and Kirkuk against ISIL and the White Flags.

June–September

• 8 June 2018 - The Government of Canada announced that it will suspend Canadian support for Peshmerga and work exclusively with the Iraqi government, in a statement a Canadian military official said "We have changed … partners," a Canadian General told reporters about the shift in support "Training with the Peshmerga was ceased when it was no longer of any value in terms of the battle against Da’esh [IS]."
• 11 July 2018 - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada would lead a NATO mission to Iraq with European allies to send 250 Canadian soldiers to Baghdad, 50 will be doing the actual training while the other 125 will be doing force protection and another 20 will help run Canadian headquarters in Baghdad.
• 4 August 2018 - Chairman of the Iraqi Baath Party, Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri in a statement broadcast on Facebook in commemoration of the anniversary of the Baath Party called on Iraqis to continue fighting the Iraqi government and allied Iranian backed groups, calling them Safavids. He also called on Saudi Arabia to intervene against Iran's influence in Iraq and praised the country. Additionally, he condemned the battle of Mosul and other battles that led up to it and claimed that Haidar al-Abadi had ordered the destruction of the cities of Ramadi, Tikrit, Fallujah and others.
• 6 September 2018 - Mortar fire was reported near the US embassy in Baghdad's Green Zone from a neighborhood controlled by the PMF's component Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, a Shia paramilitary group backed by Iran. The group fired 120mm mortars, and in response the embassy did take security measures. No casualties or injuries were reported.
• 26 September 2018 - An Iraqi commander with the PMF's 21st Brigade survived an ISIL assassination attempt that included the use of a roadside IED in the Mutaibija region of Saladin. While he did survive, three of his guards were reported wounded. ISIL reportedly continues to carry out sporadic clashes with its campaign compared to the 2013 offensive, which eventually led to the 2013–2017 war.

October

• 1 October 2018 - A roadside bomb planted by ISIL in the Kirkuk Governorate near Hawija killed an Iraqi police officer and wounded two others. On the same day, ISIL published photos of a night raid in the village of Daquq, in the southern part of the Kirkuk Governorate, showing fighters burning down the house of a village elder cooperating with the Iraqi government. ISIL also carried out a series of attacks targeting electrical facilities to sabotage the electrical grid to cutoff electricity for the Iraqi military and allied forces around Kirkuk. ISIL fighters also planted explosives around several transmission towers, and the destruction of the towers caused several blackouts in Hawija and Kirkuk.
• 3 October 2018 - The Government of Germany announced a planned extension of its military involvement in Iraq for one year to combat ISIL but will end air reconnaissance missions by 31 October 2019. On the same day unknown gunmen, believed to be ISIL, killed an individual by driving up to them in a car and opening fire, the targeted individual reportedly died at the scene as a result of the gunshot wounds.
• 4 October 2018 - An operation against ISIL was started by the Iraqi military along with the military forces of France and the United States under the CJTF-OIR coalition in the Anbar Governorate around the city of Qaim and the Syrian border where ISIL continues to operate and maintain a strong and large presence. During the operation ISIL claimed to thwart an American-led assault near the Syrian border and also claimed to have killed 3 US soldiers and wounded 4 others in the clashes, the US military has not confirmed or denied the claimed losses.
• 5 October 2018 - US-led coalition planes bombed an ISIL position in the village of Kushaf near the Tigris river in the Kirkuk Governorate, reportedly killing 6 ISIL members. ISIL detonated a roadside bomb, killing an oil employee and injuring 11 others in a bus in Baiji in the Saladin Governorate. In a separate attack in Fallujah in the Anbar Governorate, ISIL detonated a car bomb injuring an Iraqi policeman and 3 others. ISIL released a video from Kirkuk, showing its fighters planting IEDs and carrying out ambushes or raids on Iraqi outposts. The video also claimed that the group has killed and injured more than 927 government forces since 2017 in the Kirkuk region, and in the end video the group executed several individuals in remote areas and assassinated two individuals cooperating with the Iraqi government at their houses.
• 7 October 2018 - ISIL claimed responsibility for the detonation of an explosive device in the Kadhimiya neighborhood of Baghdad that resulted in the death and injury of 12 Shiites.
• 8 October 2018 - Iraq's interior minister Qasim al-Araji posted a video on his Facebook page which claimed that an unnamed extremist group is behind the murder of 22 year-old Iraqi model Tara Fares. Fares, who won Miss Baghdad in 2015, was shot and killed while driving her car in Baghdad in September. On the same day, ISIL militants shot dead 2 Iraqi Policemen at a checkpoint near Mosul, and fled the scene afterwards.
• 9 October 2018 - 4 PMF militia fighters were killed in an attack by ISIL in the Hit district of Al Anbar Governorate.
• 10 October 2018 - At least 10 Iraqi security forces were killed when ISIL insurgents attacked a gas field on the western part of Al Anbar Governorate.
• 16 October 2018 - An Iraqi policeman was killed while 2 others were injured fighting with ISIL in western Kirkuk. On the same day Iraqi Federal forces detained a Kurdish reporter covering news about strikes in Tuz Khurmatu in anniversary of the Iraqi takeover of Kirkuk.
• 17 October 2018 - An unofficial ISIL linked media outlet claimed the death of 6 Badr Organization militia fighters in Diyala as the result of ISIL IED.
• 20 October 2018 - An explosive device detonated at a mosque in the Zubeir district of Basra, no group has claimed responsibility nor were any casualties or injuries reported.
• 23 October 2018 - A car bomb went off in the Qayyara district of Mosul killing 6 individuals and leaving 30 injured. No group has claimed responsibility for the bombing; however, Iraqi officials have accused ISIL of carrying out the attack.
• 24 October 2018 - Turkish foreign minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu stated that Turkey would support the Iraqi government in reconstruction and in training the Iraqi military as part of a NATO mission saying, "Iraq’s reconstruction is important. We (Turkey) are the most generous country. We pledged $5 billion loan [for Iraq]. Our firms will benefit from this money with investment, trade and by undertaking projects [there]" adding "Now, as NATO, we will train Iraqi security forces".
• 26 October 2018 - Five individuals were killed in Al-Ba'aj in the Nineveh Governorate west of Mosul after being abducted by ISIL for cooperating with the Iraqi military by gathering information about the group.
• 28 October 2018 - South Korea sent a shipment of 6 KAI T-50 Golden Eagle fighter jets, the Iraqi Ministry of Defense said this was the third shipment of fighters jets provided by South Korea. On the same day the Iraqi military accidentally shelled a village in the Diyala Governorate due to suspicion of ISIL presence. No casualties were reported. This is reportedly the second such incident in the month, with the last incident happening days before.
• 29 October 2018 - In response to a successful counter-attack by ISIL against the Syrian Democratic Forces along the Iraqi-Syrian border the Iraqi government deployed PMU militiamen along the border to reinforce sensitive positions in fears of a potential ISIL cross-border infiltration. On the same day Italy announced a planned end to military operations in Iraq in support of both the Kurdistan Regional Government and Iraqi Government by the spring of 2019.
• 30 October 2018 - 2 Shiite pilgrims were killed and another injured in an ISIL attack on an Arbaeen celebration in the town of Khanaqin in the Diyala Governorate, after the explosion police reportedly attempted to defuse a device.
• 31 October 2018 - A man was killed and his son was injured in a suspected ISIL attack near a shrine in the town of Makhmur, Iraq.

1st Squadron, 3rd Cavalry Regiment of the US Army drill with the Battelle DroneDefender in Iraq, 30 October 2018. US troops anticipate ISIL units deploying drones during reconnaissance or attacks

November

• 1 November 2018 - A land mine struck a vehicle of a governor near Baiji, two of his bodyguards were injured while the governor escaped unscathed. Another bomb targeting a military patrol exploded in West Mosul killing a soldier and injuring at least 7 more, ISIL was most likely behind the attack. On the same day clashes occurred between Arab and Kurdish farmers in Daquq due to Arab farmers asking Kurdish farmers to leave the area, while the Kurdish claimed the area was theirs.
• 2 November 2018 - ISIL claimed to have killed a French soldier via the Amaq Agency whom was cooperating with Peshmerga in a combined operation in the village of Balkanah in the Tuz Khurmato district of the Kirkuk Governorate, ISIL published the claims in Arabic and French, the French military denied the claim via Twitter. On the same day ISIL began attempted to infiltrate Iraq from Syria in Rabii'a sub district 130 kilometers west of Mosul. In the clashes 4 Iraqi soldiers & 2 ISIL fighters were killed near Iraqi border.
• 4 November 2018 - A series of bombings struck several different areas in the capital of Iraq, Baghdad, killing at least 7 people and injuring an additional 14. ISIL claimed responsibility for the bombings.
• 8 November 2018 - A car bomb exploded near a restaurant in the Iraqi city of Mosul, killing at least 4 people and injuring 12 according to Iraqi officials. ISIL was most likely behind the attack.
• 9 November 2018 - 3 civilians were killed in an armed attack by ISIL in a village located near southern Mosul.
• 11 November 2018 - 9 people including 8 civilians and a tribal fighter were killed when ISIL attacked a house of a fighter of the Tribal Mobilization Forces near the Al-Karmah area in Iraq.
• 12 November 2018 - 2 people were captured including a policeman and a civilian and then executed by Islamic State militants in a village in the southern Kirkuk Governorate.
• 15 November 2018 - A bomb detonated while a police vehicle was travelling from Mosul to a nearby village, leaving 2 civilians dead and a policeman injured. ISIL was most likely behind the attack.
• 18 November 2018 - A car bomb detonated in the city of Tikrit, killing 5 civilians and injuring 16 others. ISIL claimed responsibility for the attack.
• 19 November 2018 - A bomb and shooting attack on a police patrol killed an officer and wounded 4 others in the area of the Khanaqin. No group claimed responsibility, but ISIL was most likely behind the blast.
• 22 November 2018 - A roadside bomb detonated near a bus in a town near Mosul, killing 4 schoolchildren and injuring 7 others. No group claimed responsibility, but the attack was blamed on ISIL. That same day, 2 paramilitary soldiers were killed and 4 others wounded when their vehicle ran over a landmine near the Badush Dam. The landmine had been planted by ISIL.

December

• 6 December 2018 - Unknown gunmen assassinated a commander affiliated Muqtada al-Sadr's Peace Companies.
• 15 December 2018 - A coalition airstrike conducted by a B1 Lancer heavy bomber targeting a tunnel entrance West of Mosul in the Atshana Mountains killed 4 ISIL fighters.

2019

January–July

Further information: Sinjar clashes (2019)

• 14 January 2019 - An ISIL attack on a checkpoint northwest of Kirkuk resulted in the death of 1 PMU fighter.
• 9 February 2019 - 2 Iraqi bomb disposal soldiers were killed while defusing a bomb in the city of Hīt, West of Ramadi.
• 2 February 2019 - Popular Mobilization Forces killed 2 ISIL fighters trying to sneak into Diyala Governorate from the Hamreen mountains area.
• 17 March 2019 - Clashes between the Iraqi Army and PKK in Sinjar left 2 Iraqi soldiers dead and 5 militants wounded according to the Iraqi Military. The fighting started after PKK militia fighters were denied passage through an army checkpoint.
• 7 July 2019 - The Iraqi army launched an Operation, dubbed "Will of Victory" to clear the Salahaddin, Nineveh and Anbar provinces of ISIL sleeper cells. It had concluded by 11 July 2019.

August

• 4 August 2019 - ISIL claimed to have destroyed 4 Iraqi government vehicles and to have killed a police officer with an IED in Baghdad, ISIL later released a video showing the attack.
• 10 August 2019 - A US marine was killed in the Nineveh Governorate by ISIL while advising Iraqi security forces.

September

• 10 September 2019 - A massive bombing of Qanus Island, on the Tigris River south of Mosul, leveled an ISIL transit and operations hub. Over 80,000 pounds of laser-guided bombs left behind a heavily cratered island.
• 20 September 2019 - 2019 Karbala bombing: An unidentified man boarded a minibus in the southern Iraqi city of Karbala, disembarking a little later after having left a bag behind. It exploded shortly afterwards, killing 12 and wounding five others. The suspect was later arrested and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant claimed responsibility. The bombing was one of the worst attack against civilians since the end of the War in Iraq.

Coalition airstrike on ISIL positions, Qanus Island, Iraq, September 2019

October

• 21 October 2019 - ISIL attacked an Iraqi security checkpoint in the Allas oilfields area in northern Salahuddin province, killing 2 and wounding 3 security members.
• 30 October 2019 - Rockets were fired into the Green Zone in Baghdad near the US embassy amid mass protests against the Iraqi government, an Iraqi soldier was reportedly killed by the rocket fire.

November

• 26 November 2019 - Six ISIL members were killed following a police chase in the area of Wadi al-Karha, southwest of Kirkuk.

December

• 3 December 2019 - Iraqi security forces announce the capture of Baghdadi's "deputy" who operated under the name of "Abu Khaldoun". According to security officials, a police unit in Hawija, Kirkuk Governorate, tracked down Khaldoun to an apartment in the March 1 area where he was hiding; he possessed a fake I.D. under the name of Shaalan Obeid when apprehended. Khaldoun was previously ISIL's "military prince" of Iraq's Saladin Governorate.
• 17 December 2019 - A coalition airstrike targeted ISIS locations in Makhmur District.

2020

January

• 16 January 2020 - An Iraqi SWAT team announced the capture of ISIS mufti Abu Abdul Bari, also known as Shifa al-Nima, in Mosul who authorized the destruction of Prophet Jonah Mosque on 24 July 2014. Amusingly, he was taken away on the back of a truck, since he weighted 254 kilograms (560 lb).
• 19 January 2020 - Iraqi counter terrorism forces (ICTS) arrested an ISIS security official in Fallujah.

March

See also: Withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq (2020–2021)

• 8 March 2020 - Two American soldiers were "killed by enemy forces while advising and accompanying Iraqi Security Forces during a mission to eliminate an ISIS terrorist stronghold in a mountainous area of north central Iraq", according to the U.S.-led coalition in Baghdad. The two U.S. Marine Raiders were killed in the Qara Chokh Mountains near Makhmur.

April

• April 28 - A militant wearing a suicide vest attacked the Intelligence and Counter-Terrorism Directorate in the Qadisiyah neighborhood of Kirkuk, wounding three Iraqi security personnel. Iraqi government officials blamed the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

May–November

• May 2 - At least ten members of the PMF were killed in an attack by ISIS.

December

• December 14 - 42 ISIS fighters were killed by Iraqi forces in the Nineveh governorate

2021

January

• January 17 - An IED was activated against an Iraqi army vehicle in a village north of Tal Afar, about 60 km west of Mosul. Lieutenant Colonel Haidar Adel Mohammad, an Iraqi army foj commander, was killed. In addition, eight soldiers were killed, as well as the mukhtar of one of the nearby villages. According to ISIS, he was an Iraqi army collaborator.
• January 21 - The 2021 Baghdad bombings took place, killing at least 34 people (including the two attackers) and injuring 110 of those 36 are being treated in hospitals. ISIS is suspected of carrying out the attack. This was the first major deadly terrorist attack in the city since January 2018.
• January 22 - ISIS targeted an Iraqi army compound with machine gun fire about 70 km south of Kirkuk. Two soldiers were killed.
• January 23 - At least 11 fighters from the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMU) militias, were killed in an ambush by ISIS in Saladin Province.
• January 24 - Iraq's president, Barham Salih, ratified 340 death sentences of arrested ISIS militants and affiliates.
• January 27 - 11 ISIS fighters including three leaders, one of them Abu Yasser al-Issawi, were killed in a counter-terrorism operation in Al-Chai Valley, southern Kirkuk.
• January 29 - an Iraqi policeman was targeted by machine gun fire on the Kirkuk-Tikrit road. He was killed. An Iraqi police assistance force arriving at the scene was targeted by RPG rockets and machine gun fire. Several policemen were killed or wounded. Six vehicles were put out of commission.
• January 30 - an Iraqi army force killed Muthanna Shataran al-Marawi, ISIS’s military commander in charge of the Al-Rutba region, in western Iraq.

February

• February 1 - British Royal Air Force carry out airstrikes against ISIS sleeper cells. An IED was activated against an Iraqi police vehicle near a village about 70 km southwest of Kirkuk. Two policemen were killed.
• February 2 - 5 members of the PMF were killed by IS militants in a clash in Diyala province. ISIS operatives fired machine guns and RPG rockets at an Iraqi army position west of Tuz Khormato, about 100 km northeast of Samarra. Two soldiers were killed and another was wounded. In addition, ISIS operatives fired machine guns at a Popular Mobilization camp in the Karmah region, about 20 km northeast of Fallujah. A Popular Mobilization fighter was killed and another was wounded.
• February 4 - ISIS operatives attacked an Iraqi army force west of Khanaqin. One soldier was killed and two others were wounded.
• February 5 - At least one soldier was killed and two wounded in an ISIS attack that targeted Iraqi security forces in northern Kirkuk province. In addition,ISIS operatives fired at an Iraqi police camp about 30 km south of Kirkuk. One policeman was killed and three others were wounded.

• February 6 - ISIS operatives fired machine guns at an Iraqi army force that tried to ambush them about 20 km south of Fallujah. One soldier was killed and two others were wounded.
• February 10 - Islamic State (IS) militants attacked the Iraqi Army forces in the eastern province of Diyala, killing at least one soldier.
• February 11 - an Iraqi police compound was targeted by machine guns south of Daquq, in southern Kirkuk. Four policemen were killed and three others were wounded.
• February 13 - an Iraqi soldier was targeted by machine gun fire north of Jalula, about 75 km northeast of Baqubah. The soldier was killed. A thermal camera was destroyed.
• February 15 - an IED was activated against an Iraqi army force in the southern Daquq area, about 70 km south of Kirkuk. One soldier was killed and several others were wounded. The Iraqi Air Force also attacked ISIS targets in the province of Diyala. At least five ISIS operatives were reportedly killed.
• February 17 - an Iraqi army compound west of Tuz Khormato, about 100 km northeast of Samarra, was targeted by machine gun fire and RPG rockets. Two soldiers were killed.
• February 18 - the Popular Mobilization Forces announced that three of its members were killed and 5 were wounded in an attack by the Islamic State (ISIS) in the outskirts of Khanaqin district in Diyala.
• February 20 - the government-backed Popular Mobilization Forces killed two ISIS leaders in an operation in the Tarmiyah area around 30 kilometers north of Baghdad, afterwards clashes erupted between the two sides in the same area, leaving three Popular Mobilization Forces members killed and two others wounded while three ISIS members were killed. On the same day a roadside bomb planted by ISIS members exploded near a Popular Mobilization Forces vehicle in Jurf al-Sakhar around 50 kilometers south of Baghdad, killing a paramilitary member and wounding two others.
• February 28 - Eight Iraqi soldiers and Tribal Mobilization fighters were killed and at least 7 more wounded after ISIS militants set off a car bomb in tha Haditha area of Anbar province, close to the Syria-Iraqi border. On the same day, a PMF vehicle was targeted with gunfire in the Kanaan area. Three PMF fighters were killed and the vehicle was destroyed. Two Iraqi soldiers were also targeted by gunfire in the Tarmiyah area, killing one soldier and wounding the other.
• February 29 - A soldier and four tribal fighters were killed and four others were injured in a bombing as they were carrying out a search operation in al-Madham, 80 kilometers west of Haditha.

March

• March 3 - An IED exploded, targeting Iraqi soldiers in the Hamrin area. The blast killed one soldier. An Iraqi army camp was also targeted in the Mashahida area, resulting in the death of 1 soldier.
• March 5 - 5 Iraqi policemen were killed and another 5 were wounded after IS attacked police checkpoints in the Mutaybijah area.
• March 8 - 1 Iraqi army captain was killed in a gunfight in northern Baghdad and another civilian was killed and 8 injured in a separate attack as an person threw a grenade at them in Baghdad. On the same day, 8 ISIS militants were arrested in three provinces.
• March 9 - Airstrikes destroyed a site containing 10 ISIS militants in Nineveh province in northern Iraq. Iraqi security forces also killed two ISIS militants.
• March 10 - British RAF jets conducted airstrikes on IS held caves west of Erbil, northern Iraq. Two caves were successfully destroyed.
• March 11 - One Iraqi soldier was killed after he was targeted by machine gun fire in the outskirts of Miqdadiya.
• March 11 - Two Iraqi soldiers were killed after an army outpost was attacked south of Daquq.
• March 12 - IS militants dressed in military uniforms massacred 7 members of the same family in the village of Albu Daur, south of Tikrit in Salah ad-Din province.
• March 13 - One Iraqi policeman was killed and another was wounded after an armed attack on a police post in the Riyad area, southwest of Kirkuk. On the same day, Iraqi army personnel attacked IS militants travelling over the Syrian-Iraqi border. The militants eventually fled to Syria after an exchange of fire that left one Iraqi soldier dead.
• March 14 - IS militants killed a Tribal PMF member and his daughter after they stormed their house in Tarimiya district, north of Baghdad.
• March 15 - One Iraqi soldier was killed and another was wounded after IS militants activated an IED targeting an Iraqi army foot patrol in the Al-Ghaith area.
• March 18 - ISIS ambushed a PMF convoy near the Samarra area. Six PMF fighters were killed in the exchange of fire. Another PMF fighter was also killed and two policemen were wounded by gunfire in a separate incident in the Rashad area, near Kirkuk.
• March 20 - Two Shi’ite civilians were abducted and executed by ISIS fighters in the Abarah area.
• March 22 - The coalition announces that it has conducted 133 airstrikes against ISIL over the past ten days in Iraq destroying 61 hideouts, 24 caves and killing dozens of ISIL militants with Iraqi forces leading the ground effort.
• March 24 - An Iraqi army camp was attacked by IS militants west of Tuz Khormato. The attack left 1 Iraqi soldier dead and 2 more wounded.
• March 26 - The Iraqi government announced that fortifications, including thermal cameras and control towers, have been installed along the Iraqi-Syrian border to prevent the infiltration of ISIS from neighboring Syria which comes as ISIS militants have stepped up their attacks in 2021.
• On the same day ISIL forces detonated an IED targeting PMF forces in the Saadiya region, leaving one PMF fighter dead and three others wounded.
• March 29 - the PMF announced that the commander of the 314th PMF Brigade and a member of the 315th PMF Brigade were both killed after clashing with militants in an anti-ISIL operation in the Samarra area.

April

• April 1 - The coalition destroyed a cave killing an ISIS militant in Therthar valley between Saladin and Anbar Governorate, meanwhile, Iraqi forces found 60 IEDs belonged to ISIS in Kirkuk Governorate.
• April 5 - An Iraqi policeman was killed after an IS attack on a police outpost in the Riyad region, near Kirkuk.
• April 7 - Iraq announces that it has killed 34 ISIS militants and arrested 99 during a 3-month long operation against the terrorist group around the country. 60 ISIS militants were also killed in a 10-day long operation near the town of Makhmur in northern Iraq.
• April 10 - An Iraqi policeman was killed in Daquq after ISIL militants targeted a police outpost.
• April 11 - a Tribal Mobilization outpost was targeted by ISIL gunfire in southern Daquq, in the southern part of Kirkuk. One fighter was killed and another was wounded.
• April 12 - Three Iraqi soldiers were killed and 2 more were wounded after an IED exploded in the Kara Tapa area. An Iraqi intelligence operative was also assassinated near Tarmiyah.
• April 13 - Three Iraqi policemen were killed and another wounded after ISIL operatives attacked their camp in the Daquq area.
• April 14 - A Turkish soldier was killed after rockets were fired at a Turkish military base in Iraq's north Bashiqa region.
• April 15 - Two joint Iraqi-PMF camps were attacked by ISIS operatives in the Tuz Khormato region, leaving three soldiers dead.
• April 16 - Four Iraqi soldiers were killed after IS militants attacked three joint Iraqi-PMF army camps near the Al-Haliwa airport, south of Kirkuk. An Iraqi army camp was also attacked near Al-Kayf, killing two Iraqi soldiers. Furthermore, an Iraqi police camp was also targeted by gunfire in the Riyad region, killing two policemen.
• April 19 - Two army camps south of the Al-Azim area, were targeted by IS gunfire. Two Iraqi soldiers were killed and an officer and a soldier were wounded. IS militants also destroyed 40 generators and transformers used by Tribal Mobilisation forces.
• April 20 - Houses of Shiite residents were targeted by gunfire about 90 km northeast of Baqubah. One resident was killed, and four houses and two cars were set on fire. An Iraqi army patrol arriving on the scene to provide assistance was targeted by an IED and gunfire. Three soldiers were killed and two officers and another soldier were wounded. ISIL later posted images of the events on their telegram.
• April 22 - An IED was activated against an Iraqi army vehicle in the Al-Waqf region, northwest of Baqubah. One soldier was killed and three others were wounded. An Iraqi police patrol that arrived on the scene was targeted by gunfire and also hit by an IED. Six policemen, including an officer, were killed, and two others were wounded. Two Iraqi policemen were also killed after militants attacked an Iraq police camp Al-Sous, south of Kirkuk.
• April 24 - Two Iraqi police officers and a civilian were killed in a ISIL double bombing in the province of Diyala. A civilian was also shot dead in Diyala later in the day, after militants fired at Iraqi security personnel.
• April 25 - Suspected IS militants raided Qayee village in the Khanaqin district, killing the village chief and wounding two others. On the same day, an IED was activated against a Tribal Mobilization vehicle near Baqubah. One fighter was killed and three others were wounded.
• April 26 - An IED exploded in the village of Jizani, targeting a Rapid Response unit deployed from Baghdad to sweep the area. The attack killed an intelligence officer and injured six members of the unit, including the commanding officer. On the same day an IED killed a PMF fighter in teh Hammam al-Alil subdistrict of Ninewa province.
• April 27 - Four Iraqi policemen were killed while attempting to diffuse a bomb planted by ISIL militants in Al-Rashad district in Kirkuk province.
• April 29 - An IED explosion killed a brigadier general in Iraq’s Border Guard and his driver while they were travelling on a highway in Anbar province. On the same day, sniper fire a killed a PMF fighter in the Yathrib subdistrict south of Samarra in Salah ad-Din province.
• April 30 - An IED attack by ISIS killed 4 Iraqi soldiers in the Tarmiya area of north Baghdad. An Iraqi policeman was also killed during an ISIS attack in Daquq, Kirkuk.

May

• May 1 - 3 Peshmerga fighters, including a captain, were killed after ISIL militants attacked Peshmerga positions close to the village of Qaya Bashi, Kirkuk. An Iraqi Brigadier General and another officer were killed by an ISIS IED blast in Akashat, west of Anbar province.

• May 5 - ISIL militants destroyed two oil wells and killed an Iraqi policeman at the Bay Hassan oil field in Kirkuk province.

• May 9 - the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) said that ISIL militants attacked its checkpoints in al-Jalisiya area near Samara in Salah ad-Din province. The attack killed two PMF fighters and injured another two.

• May 11 - British RAF Typhoons targeted a group of ISIS fighters southwest of Mosul. Several IS militants were killed in the airstrikes. ISIL attacked a checkpoint in Kifri district in Diyala province, killing a Peshmerga fighter.
• May 14 - an ISIL attack with two IEDs damaged power transfer towers in Riyadh subdistrict, west of Kirkuk province.
• May 16 - another ISIL attack heavily damaged two towers of the Mirsad-Diyala power transfer line in the Khanaqin district of Diyala province.
• May 17 - Iraqi forces came under fire from ISIL militants near the city of Mosul and a pair of Eurofighter Typhoons from the international coalition attacked the terrorists, killing a number of ISIL militants.
• May 19 - ISIL attacked checkpoint of tribal fighters in the Buhruz subdistrict of Diyala province. One tribal fighter was killed in the attack.
• May 22 - ISIS militants killed Majid al-Obeidi, a tribal leader in Salah ad-Din province, after they raided his house. One ISIL militant was also killed in the raid.
• May 23 - 4 ISIL militants were killed in an airdrop operation by Iraqi forces in eastern Iraq.
• May 28 - ISIL released a video of them executing at least 8 Iraqi 'collaborators' in a series of assassination videos and two beheading videos.
• May 29 - A PMF fighter was killed by ISIS sniper fire whilst repelling an infiltration attempt by ISIS in Diyala.

June

• June 1 - Kurdish Forces along with french special forces targetted an ISIL hideout near the city of Kifri at night, killing 8 militants.
• June 3 - An explosion at a crowded restaurant within a highly protected Shia shrine area of al-Kadhimiya neighborhood in northern Baghdad killed four people and injured 36 others. The Iraqi government claimed it was a propane tank that blew up however on June 4, ISIS claimed responsibility, saying it was an IED that exploded. The Iraqi government arrested 7 individuals in relation to the explosion.
• June 4 - The Iraqi Interior Ministry announces the detention of 964 wanted terrorists during a series of campaigns carried out from May 20 to 3 June.
• June 7 - One PMF fighter was killed and another was wounded during clashes with an ISIS cell, northeast of Baquba, Diyala province.
• June 8 - An ISIS member was killed by Iraqi forces near Khanaqin in Diyala.
• June 9 - Iraqi forces found the bodies of 11 Yazidis that were killed in Sinjar by ISIL in 2014. 18 terror suspects were also arrested by Iraqi forces in Nineveh Also, A man was killed and his son was wounded in an attack carried out by ISIS on a village west of Kirkuk.
• June 12 - ISIS militants attacked a Federal Police checkpoint in the Riyadh subdistrict in western Kirkuk province, killing a police captain and injured a policeman.
• June 13 - A mass grave was opened in Nineveh Governorate, which contained the remains of 123 victims of ISIL, all of whom were inmates of the Badoush prison complex.
• June 14 - The Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service that its commando forces have killed 13 ISIL militants around the country in June so far.
• June 15 - 3 Iraqi army soldiers were killed by an IED explosion in the village of Muradiyat al-Zahawi, southwest of Baquba, in Diyala Province.
• June 16 - An Iraqi policeman was killed by ISIL sniper fire near the village of Abdul Hamid on the outskirts of Al-Abbara district, northeast of Baquba.
• June 19 - Iraqi forces arrests 10 ISIL militants in the Kirkuk province.
• 20 June - 3 civilians were killed by an ISIS sniper attack in Albu Bakr in Al-Azim, north of Baquba.
• 21 June - An ISIS militant was killed during an ambush in Diyala.On the same day an ISIS Shariah judge was sentenced to death by hanging.
• 22 June - Iraqi security forces discovered the bodies of a farmer and his son in Diyala, two hours after they were kidnapped by ISIS operatives.
• 24 June - 5 Iraqi police officers were killed after ISIS attacked their checkpoint in the village of Shabija Saud, west of Daquq district, south of Kirkuk.
• 25 June - The Iraqi judiciary sentenced 13 ISIS convicts to death.
• 26 June - 2 Iraqi police officers were killed and another was wounded after ISIS attacked their positions in the village of Abu Khanajer, west of Kirkuk.
• 29 June - An ISIS militant was killed by PMU forces while he was trying to blow up an electric power transmission tower northeast of Baquba.

July

• July 3 - 4 civilians were killed and 3 were wounded after ISIS attacked a group of fishermen in the Al-Zarka area in Haditha district, west of Anbar.

See also

• Eastern Syria insurgency, a similar insurgency in neighboring Syria
• 2015–2018 Iraqi protests
• List of terrorist incidents in 2018
• List of terrorist incidents in 2019
• 2019–2021 Iraqi protests
• Casualty recording
• Iraq Body Count project