At a Glance

• Kirkuk officials and relatives called for a high-level investigation into the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service following recent clashes with ISIS militants.
• A missing 15-year-old teenager, Muhammed Hemin, was found martyred after being falsely identified as a slain ISIS militant.
• Security forces conducted the high-intensity operation in Pirde without any prior coordination with the local Iraqi Army.
• Officials demanded that Baghdad hold forces accountable for reckless, indiscriminate shooting that resulted in two youth casualties.

Kirkuk officials and relatives called for a high-level investigation into the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) following recent Pirde clashes with ISIS militants that resulted in the deaths of two Kurdish youths.

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Key Statements and Focus Area

• Rebwar Taha, First Deputy Governor of Kirkuk, stated, “We have requested an investigation into this matter at the highest levels in Baghdad. Those who fired indiscriminately must be held accountable, and legal action must be taken against them.”
• Speaking to Channel8, family members of 15-year-old Muhammed Hemin called on Kurdish political parties to take action and safeguard their rights regarding the incident.
• Aso Mamand, head of the PUK’s organizations in Kirkuk-Saladin, stated that "what deeply concerns us" is that security forces denied having the missing young man in their custody, only for his body to be discovered today.

The body of a teenager, identified as Muhammed Hemin, who had been missing for two days, was discovered on Tuesday after he was martyred during clashes between the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service and ISIS militants on Sunday.

His body was transferred to the Kirkuk Forensic Medicine Department earlier today, following a period where the young man, the son of the owner of the market where the confrontation occurred, was reported missing with his whereabouts unknown.

Security sources previously claimed that he had been detained by the Counter-Terrorism Service for interrogation purposes.

Hemin was among those mistakenly counted in the initial casualties as militant following an earlier announcement stating that two ISIS militants had been killed.

A source told Channel8 that one of the two named ISIS militants is actually still alive, and the young Kurdish man was falsely listed as killed in his place.

Meanwhile, another source confirmed to Channel8 that the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism force entered Pirde and carried out the operation without any prior coordination with the Iraqi Army in the area.

Channel8 has learned that the Prime Minister of Iraq, the Army Chief of Staff, and the Ministry of Defense have been notified, and a decision has been made to submit a detailed report regarding the incident to Baghdad.

Briefing reporters on the incident, Rebwar Taha, First Deputy Governor of Kirkuk, emphasized that “fighting terrorists is not just about shooting.”

Taha stated that the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service should have better evaluated the situation and ensured greater preparation when targeting the objective.

“There was total chaos in the shooting, and the result was that two children were caught up in it—and that is where the tragedy lies,” he added.

“We have requested an investigation into this matter at the highest levels in Baghdad,” the Deputy Governor highlighted, adding that “those who fired indiscriminately must be held accountable, and legal action must be taken against them."

Meanwhile, PUK official Aso Mamand told reporters that while they support the security apparatus in fighting terrorism, “this specific manner of action and those responsible for this incident must be held accountable.”

FYI

The high-intensity confrontation broke out on Sunday evening, within a central market area in the Pirde of Kirkuk Governorate.

Murad Zana, 14, and Muhammed Hemin, 15, both the only children of their respective families, were martyred following clashes between the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service and ISIS militants.

The body of the missing youth, who was inside the market when the fighting began, was officially turned over to his grieving family members on Tuesday morning.

During an interview with Channel8 yesterday, Iraqi lawmaker Mazin Gharib warned that a massive 168-kilometer security vacuum in Kirkuk has allowed ISIS militants to reorganize and establish safe havens.

Consequently, he urged immediate coordination between Erbil and Baghdad to deploy joint military brigades and secure the vulnerable region.

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