ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – The Iraqi defense ministry on Wednesday announced the killing of several alleged Islamic State (ISIS) members and destroying their hideouts in a security operation in Kirkuk, as Iraq continues efforts to target the group’s remnants in the country.

The Iraqi army, supported by the special forces, carried out a “high-quality security operation” in Kirkuk, resulting in the “deaths of several terrorists and the destruction of a number of hideouts used by terrorist groups as shelters and logistical support centers,” according to a ministry statement.

The defense ministry reiterated its “unwavering commitment to pursuing terrorist elements wherever they may be found and to preventing any threat to the security and stability of the country.”

Despite being territorially defeated in 2017, ISIS militants continue to pose a security threat in Iraq through sporadic hit-and-run operations and attacks on remote areas. Iraqi forces, in cooperation with Kurdish forces, have intensified their efforts to eliminate these remnants.

Days ago, Rashid Fleih al-Halfi, director of the Joint Information Operations Center, said that the 610-kilometer (379-mile) frontier between Iraq and Syria is “fully secured” through multiple defensive lines involving border guards, the army, the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), and the Interior Ministry. He added that Iraqi forces use thermal cameras and drones to monitor the border and prevent infiltration attempts from the terror group.

Earlier in the year, Iraq received thousands of ISIS prisoners from Syria in coordination with Washington after a turmoil caused by a January Syrian government offensive in Rojava (northeast Syria) raised fears that detention centers, previously operated by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), would be unable to maintain security amid the conflict.

In February, the US military's Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that it had completed the transfer of just over 5,700 adult male ISIS fighters from Syria to Iraq.