ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani on Thursday received a commander of the global coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS), focusing on the “urgent need” to combat the extremist group’s threats in the region. The discussion between President Barzani and Major General Joel B. Vowell, commander of the Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve “revolved around the pressing security concerns and the continuous threat of terrorism, particularly emanating from ISIS, which poses a persistent danger to the stability and peace of Iraq and Syria,” read a statement from the Kurdistan Region Presidency. They also stressed on the importance of continuous cooperation and coordination between the Peshmerga, Iraqi army and the anti-ISIS global coalition and “the urgent need for collective efforts to combat these [ISIS] threats,” added the statement. ISIS seized control of swathes of Iraqi territory during a brazen offensive in 2014 but it was declared territorially defeated in 2017 when its so-called caliphate in the country fell as Iraqi and Kurdish fighters, supported by a US-led international coalition, claimed back lands lost to the jihadists. Despite its territorial defeat, the group has continued to pose a serious security threat to the country through hit-and-run attacks, bombings, and abductions in several provinces, particularly in areas disputed between the Iraqi government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), which stretch across several provinces including Diyala, Salahaddin, and Kirkuk. “Discussions also focused on broader regional dynamics and various matters of mutual interest,” read the statement from the Kurdistan Region Presidency on Thursday.
