UK Offers Condolences After Two Peshmerga Soldiers Killed in IS Attack

The United Kingdom has offered condolences after two Peshmerga soldiers of the Kurdistan Region were killed in an attack by the Islamic State (IS) near Erbil province on Saturday.

At around 9:30 pm (Erbil Time) on Saturday night, the jihadists of the Islamic State carried out an attack on the Peshmerga positions with heavy weapons and snipers in Prde area, south of capital Erbil, leaving two Kurdish soldiers killed, as confirmed by the Peshmerga Ministry.

"On behalf of the Ministry of Defence of the United Kingdom and of the British Consulate-General Erbil, I wish to offer our condolences to the Minister and Deputy Minister of Peshmerga Affairs and to all Peshmerga following the sad deaths of two brave Peshmerga fighters reported last night," Special Defense Adviser at British Consulate General in Erbil, Charles Sykes, said in a statement.

"Please also pass on our condolences to their families, colleagues and the injured Peshmerga at this sad time," he added.

Sykes further argued that "the continued insecurity and violence in the Disputed Territories is deplored."

"It directly impacts on the peace and development of this unique Region," he added. "We stand alongside you in the fight against Da'esh and against all terrorist groups threatening stability and security."

Despite the fact that Iraq announced the Islamic State as "fully defeated" in 2017, the jihadist group continues to challenge the security and stability in most parts of Iraq, particularly in the territories disputed between Erbil and Baghdad. Kurdish political and military leaders have repeatedly called for joint actions by the Iraqi and Peshmerga forces in the disputed areas to ensure the IS group would not have any chances of a resurgence.

"With our multinational colleagues, we offer our continued support to your urgent endeavours to modernise and unify the Peshmerga; and to improve security in the Disputed Territories jointly with the Federal Iraqi Security Forces," Sykes concluded.