ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraqi authorities said on Thursday that security forces captured “two important” individuals wanted by the Iraqi judiciary during an airborne operation carried out inside northeastern Syria, in coordination with Syrian security forces and the US-led coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS).
According to a statement by Iraq’s Security Media Cell, the operation was conducted under the direction and supervision of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, with technical support from the counter-ISIS global coalition.
“An airborne force from the Falcon Intelligence Cell, in coordination with Syrian security forces, carried out an operation targeting two important individuals wanted by the Iraqi judiciary inside Syrian territory,” the statement said.
The Security Media Cell described the operation as a significant step toward enhancing regional cooperation to confront cross-border security threats and safeguard national interests.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) separately reported that Kurdish internal security forces, known as the Asayish, were also involved in the operation.
The raid took place in a village in Syria’s northeastern Hasaka province, near the Iraqi border.
Iraqi authorities have not disclosed the nationality of the detainees or the charges filed against them.
Iraq maintains close coordination with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and continues to receive Iraqi nationals with alleged ISIS ties from SDF-run camps and detention facilities in northeastern Syria.
Thousands of people suspected of having links to ISIS are currently held in the SDF-controlled al-Hol and Roj camps in Hasaka province, also known as Rojava.
Meanwhile, Iraq is strengthening border security with Syria by constructing a three-meter-high concrete wall along its northwestern frontier, which also borders the Kurdistan Region. The barrier includes concrete blocks, deep trenches, and watchtowers.
Iraq shares a 618-kilometer border with Syria. Construction of the border fortifications began two years ago.
Following the early December collapse of longtime Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad’s regime, a former ally of Baghdad, Iraq intensified efforts to secure the frontier amid concerns over instability and potential infiltration by ISIS militants and sleeper cells.