A Kurdish civilian teenager was killed on Sunday during clashes between Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service (ICTS) forces and suspected Islamic State (ISIS) militants in Prde (Altun Kupri), in Kirkuk province. It remains unclear which side fired the shot that killed him.

The ICTS said its forces conducted an operation in Prde targeting three suspected ISIS members, killing two and arresting a third. A young Kurdish civilian, identified as Murad Zana, was also killed during the fighting.

Iraq’s Security Media Cell chief, Saad Maan, confirmed to Rudaw that a civilian was killed in the clashes. The ICTS did not mention Zana’s death in its statement on the operation.

According to information obtained by Rudaw, ICTS forces had been tracking the suspected militants based on prior intelligence. The operation was initially planned for an unpopulated area near a household-supplies warehouse in central Prde.

However, the suspects reportedly realized they were being monitored and opened fire, prompting the security forces to return fire. Two ICTS personnel were injured in the exchange, according to Maan.

Witnesses said some of the suspected militants took refuge inside the warehouse during the fighting.

“It happened in the late afternoon. Those ISIS members entered [the warehouse] and fought with the army. They later blew themselves up,” Hakim Rahman, the brother of the warehouse owner, told Rudaw.

Rawand Hakim, the owner’s nephew, said there were signs that an explosion had occurred inside the building.

“It appears that he may have blown himself up inside because I saw pieces of flesh, hair and many things inside [the warehouse],” he said.

The operation was reportedly conducted without prior notification to local security agencies or administrative authorities.

Abdulmutalib Najmaddin, mayor of Prde subdistrict, said he and other local officials were unaware of the operation before it began.

“Those forces entered without informing anyone. Although I am the head of the administrative unit and head of the security committee of this subdistrict, I was not informed in advance,” Najmaddin told Rudaw.

He said no local security or government institution had been notified and that roads were closed as the forces opened fire inside the warehouse.

“One of our young men was martyred,” he said.

Zana’s family expressed anger over the conduct of the operation after his body was recovered from the warehouse.

Yawar Anwar, Zana’s uncle, questioned the use of heavy weapons during the operation.

“Does it make sense to bring all those forces and storm the town, firing DShK heavy machine guns at the warehouse? What does a child as young as 14 know about any of this?” he said.

The circumstances surrounding Zana’s death remain unclear, and it has not been established who fired the shot that killed him.

ISIS seized large areas of Iraq in 2014, including parts of Kirkuk province, before Iraqi forces declared the group territorially defeated in 2017.

Despite losing its territorial control, ISIS continues to maintain small cells in remote and disputed areas of Iraq. The group has periodically carried out attacks against Iraqi security forces and civilians, particularly in areas where security responsibilities remain divided or contested.