The Ninawa Police Command revealed Monday (June 4th) that around 600 suspects have been arrested in the province since the start of the year, Ninawa police chief Brig. Gen. Hamad Namis al-Jubury told Diyaruna.

Most of the suspects were members of the "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS), he said.

"The citizens deserve the most credit in tracking down and hunting these suspects," he said, as most of the police department's intelligence on terror hideouts "comes from the local population".

"People give us a piece of information and we act on it."

This co-operation "has led us to the arrest of senior ISIS leaders who posed a threat to security", al-Jubury said.

Some of the arrested elements were hiding in residential neighbourhoods, he said, while others were found hiding in caves and tunnels in remote areas.

Recent arrests

The Ninawa Police on Sunday (June 3rd) arrested a woman in al-Taamim neighbourhood in eastern Mosul who had worked for ISIS's medical services.

On June 2nd, police arrested a man by the name of Hussam Abdullah Khadr in the neighbourhood of Tal al-Rumman in western Mosul, who worked for ISIS's security outfit.

Prior to that, on May 31st, Iraqi forces arrested Ali Dathan Khazaal, who was the ISIS official in charge of the group's "mosque and almsgiving office". He was hiding among displaced persons south of Mosul.

Ninawa police no longer rely on secret informants, said al-Jubury, as residents now come forward with information, submitting their statements and appearing before the court to give testimonies.

"Had it not been for the local people's efforts and continuous reporting, we would not have achieved this level of security that Mosul enjoys today," he said.

"Popular support gives us greater ability to confront the enemy and thwart their plans," he said. "There has been no terrorist breach in our city for a long time and this is a great achievement accredited to our people and our forces."