ISIS builds-up amid COVID-19 crisis, Norwegian forces in Iraq warn

The Norwegian military forces in Iraq have warned that ISIS terrorists are taking advantage of the challenges posed by the novel coronavirus and the group is in the process of rebuilding.

Iran Press/Middle East: Norwegian Army Lieutenant-Colonel Stein Grongstad said: “We feel that they have an attack strategy that consists of better planning and that they are specifically targeting Iraqi forces that are not currently coordinated to the same extent as before the coronavirus struck. ISIS makes use of road bombs, possesses advanced explosives, and utilize heavier arms. They also know how to use the terrain in the border areas to their advantage. In April, there were 20 ISIS attacks on Iraqi forces in the al-Anbar province alone."

The Norwegian Telemark Battalion is stationed in Iraq to train Iraqi soldiers to deal with the terrorist threat. In recent months, they have been unable to have physical contact with the Iraqi military due to measures to stop the spread of the pandemic, whereas ISIS remains mostly in agricultural areas and are not particularly exposed to the infection. 

According to Sputnik, furthermore, prisoners have been released from prisons, including ISIS terrorist group sympathizers. According to Verdens Gang, ISIS is getting new recruits from former convicts and opened refugee camps.

An Iraqi general emphasized that ISIS has dormant cells that carry out attacks before disappearing again and use the so-called “hit-and-run” strategy. 

Iraq is under pressure from several sides. The country is under financial pressure, is in a political crisis, and then the coronavirus came to the country. ISIS is using everything they can to spread their terror,” General Tahseen al-Khafagy, spokesman for the Iraqi Joint Operation Command has stated. 

In 2014, the terrorist group ISIS, with the financial and military support of the United States and its Western and Arab allies, including Saudi Arabia, invaded Iraq, occupied large parts of the northern and western regions of the country, and committed countless crimes. Iraq then called for help to fight against these terrorists.

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