Multiple attacks claimed by the Islamic State in Tikrit and a checkpoint north of the city resulted in the deaths of eighteen, including two children.
The attacks were comprised of a gunman who shot multiple security personnel at a checkpoint west of the city, as well as a bombing to the north in an explosives-ridden vehicle. In total, seven were killed in the shooting at the first checkpoint and eleven in the bombing.
The city of Tikrit is located 87 miles northwest of Baghdad and has been the site of major conflicts between the Islamic State and Iraqi Government Security Forces. The city had been lost to the Islamic State in the First Battle of Tikrit in June 2014, where the insurgents afterward executed 1,500 members of the Iraqi air force. The city was regained in the Spring of 2015 by government forces, and since then the city has been left in relative peace. However, there are concerns the Islamic State will begin to be more aggressive as they steadily continue to lose territory in the area.
According to Reuters, the city has been the site of local and international aid groups focusing on the displacement of millions of Iraqis whose homes have been caught in the crossfire between government and insurgent forces.
The region around Tikrit has also been the location of major military movements conducted by the Iraqi government. Just this past week the district of Shirqat, which is 62 miles north of Tikrit, was taken from the Islamic State as it is believed government forces are preparing for an assault on Mosul. For the past two years, Mosul has been the central operating hub for the Islamic State in Iraq.
For now, though, the city of Tikrit will be on the defensive. As the pressure closes in on the Islamic State, it is expected their attacks will become numerous and more unpredictable.
