Islamic State militants attacked a federal police site near Hawija, southwest of Kirkuk, on Monday, killing at least one Iraqi federal policeman and wounding four others. It is the first reported assault by the group on Iraqi security forces since United States forces completed their withdrawal from Iraq on September 30, ending the American military mission in the country.
The attackers hit a federal police regiment stationed about 70 kilometres (43 miles) southwest of the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, using semi-automatic machine guns and sniper fire, two security sources told Reuters.
Table of Contents
- What happened in Hawija
- No claim of responsibility — but the signs point to ISIS
- A post-withdrawal stress test for Baghdad
- The sleeper-cell problem Washington warned about
- Frequently Asked Questions
What happened in Hawija
The attack struck a federal police site near Hawija, a town in Kirkuk province with a long and painful history in the fight against ISIS. Hawija was among the last urban strongholds held by the group and was liberated in late 2017 — but its rugged surroundings have remained fertile ground for insurgent remnants ever since.
According to Reuters, which cited two Iraqi security sources, the militants combined semi-automatic machine-gun fire with sniper shots against the federal police regiment. One policeman was killed and four others were wounded. As reported by The Jerusalem Post, Iraqi security officials had told Reuters ahead of the American withdrawal that ISIS retains sleeper cells in the country — a warning Monday's attack appears to confirm.
No claim of responsibility — but the signs point to ISIS
There was no immediate claim of responsibility. But security and army sources said Islamic State militants, who remain active in the Kirkuk-Hawija corridor, were involved in the assault.
The ambiguity is characteristic of the group's current operating pattern. Since the defeat of its self-declared caliphate nearly a decade ago, ISIS has survived in Iraq as a decentralised insurgency: small, mobile cells that strike checkpoints, security posts and remote patrols, then melt back into the countryside. Attribution often comes from battlefield evidence rather than public claims.
A post-withdrawal stress test for Baghdad
The timing makes this attack more than a routine incident. US forces completed their withdrawal from Iraq on September 30, ending the military mission that the United States led against Islamic State. Washington said it would continue to provide targeted training and intelligence support after the pullout — but that Iraqi forces would take full responsibility for the country's security and for suppressing ISIS remnants.
Monday's strike is the first real-world test of that arrangement, and the symbolism is hard to miss: barely a week after the last American troops departed, militants probed the defences of one of the country's most sensitive provinces. Iraqi officials now face the question they most wanted to avoid — whether their forces can contain a revived insurgency without the coalition's air power, surveillance and special-forces raids that spent years suppressing it.
Baghdad's answer will shape more than Iraq's internal security. The Kirkuk region sits at the centre of Iraq's oil economy and of the long-running territorial dispute between the federal government and the Kurdistan Region. Instability there has a way of spilling over — into the northern provinces, into disputed territories, and into the broader conversation about whether the Middle East can hold the line against jihadist resurgence.
The sleeper-cell problem Washington warned about
The warning signs were not subtle. Ahead of the withdrawal, Iraqi security officials told Reuters that despite the territorial defeat of the caliphate, the group retains sleeper cells in Iraq. The withdrawal had raised concerns that a security vacuum could provide an opening for Islamic State to regain strength, with some officials warning that Iraqi forces would now have to contain the group without the coalition's military presence.
Those concerns now have a concrete data point. Analysts will watch three things in the coming weeks: whether this attack is followed by a broader campaign of ambushes, whether ISIS cells in Syria coordinate with their Iraqi counterparts, and whether Baghdad's security response — or the lack of one — emboldens the remnants. Iraq has also been moving to disarm powerful militias, a delicate process that could reshape the security landscape for better or worse.
Frequently Asked Questions
Was this the first ISIS attack since the US withdrawal?
It is the first reported attack by Islamic State on Iraqi security forces since US forces completed their withdrawal from Iraq on September 30, 2026, ending the American military mission. Low-level militant activity between those dates cannot be ruled out, but nothing of this scale had been reported.
Where exactly did the attack take place?
Near Hawija, about 70 kilometres southwest of Kirkuk in northern Iraq. The area is a known corridor for ISIS sleeper cells and was one of the last towns liberated from the group's control in 2017.
What did the attackers use?
According to Iraqi security sources cited by Reuters, the militants used semi-automatic machine guns and sniper fire against a federal police regiment stationed at the site.
What happens now?
Washington continues to offer targeted training and intelligence support, but Iraqi forces bear full responsibility for security. The attack is likely to intensify pressure on Baghdad to demonstrate it can suppress ISIS remnants without direct coalition military presence — and may revive the debate over whether the withdrawal was premature.
