Local Sunni tribal fighters from southwestern Kirkuk province put on a show of unity with the Iraqi army and Shiite-led Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) operating in the area against the Islamic State (IS) on May 12 by gathering in mass, driving around in military vehicles, shooting into the air and inviting local journalists to film the scene.

As attacks continue on local forces in Sunni-majority southwestern Kirkuk, a transfer of 176 detainees arrested on terrorism charges from Sulaimaniyah to Kirkuk May 21 has drawn praise from some and wariness from others. Many of the detainees on the list, of which Al-Monitor has obtained a copy, are from Hawija and the surrounding villages.

On May 22, Quds Day, Iran-backed Shiite PMU drove over an American flag with the slogan "Death to America" written on it in the Shiite Turkmen-majority town of Taza Khormato, in Kirkuk province. Quds Day is held every year by supporters of the Iranian government to call for the “liberation” of Jerusalem.

Many of the PMU active in this area existed prior to Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani’s 2014 fatwa to take up arms against IS and have received various types of support from Iran over the years.