"Sleeper cells", composed of former Iraqi policemen and soldiers, are leading Iraqi authorities to the positions of the terrorist organization Islamic State in the Iraqi city of Mosul.
This was announced by deputy Hakim al-Zamili, who is also the chairman of the parliamentary committee for security and defense, the first high-ranking Iraqi official to confirm the existence of "sleeper cells" after weeks of rumors.
The work of its members is very dangerous because the Islamic State has cut off the mobile phone network and usually kills anyone it suspects of collaborating with the government.
On the other hand, however, according to AP, the work of the "sleeper agents" could prove to be valuable, as the international coalition led by the US intensified airstrikes around Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, in order to destroy the supply lines of the Islamic State, before the planned the operation to retake the city from the extremists.
"These patriotic groups, some of which operate from the city itself, and others from its surroundings, provide us with information about the military preparations of the Islamic State in order to face possible attacks by government forces that want to retake the city," Zamili told AP.
Islamic State captured Mosul in August, during a furious operation in northern Iraq.
Extremists currently hold a third of the territory of Iraq and neighboring Syria, where they have declared a caliphate.
Many soldiers and policemen laid down their weapons and fled during the first operation by the extremists.
Some of them, however, have now started spying for the Iraqi government, Zamili said.
The dissatisfaction of the residents of Mosul is growing, and due to the fact that the prices of most food products have more than doubled, gasoline is becoming scarcer, and the extremists have banned alcohol and cigarettes.
In late November, the Islamic State disrupted the mobile phone network in Mosul, accusing informants in the city of giving away extremist positions to the international coalition and Iraqi forces.
The outage of mobile phones caused chaos in the city.
Zamili said that whistleblowers often leave Mosul and climb to higher altitudes in order to catch a signal and be able to make phone calls.
Their information is being passed on to Iraqi security forces commanders in charge of airstrikes and military operations in Nineveh province, he added.
According to him, so far the informant's information has not been forwarded to international forces.
"We are getting a lot of useful information from the residents of Mosul who are fed up with the extremists and that is the reason why the Islamic State has blocked the mobile phone network in the city," Zamili said.
In the previous days, international forces bombed at least two dozen locations around Mosul, destroying several dozen vehicles, buildings, combat positions and extremist units.
Those airstrikes, according to an unnamed senior military official, are just the beginning of a new phase, and military leaders are watching to see how the extremists will react.
The AP agency estimates that, however, a possible offensive to conquer Mosul from the extremists is still months away.
Zamili pointed out that until then the intelligence obtained by the Iraqi government is very helpful.
To encourage others, Iraq's parliament is considering legislation that would allow the redeployment of soldiers and police officers who served under former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and have now taken an "honorable stand" in cooperation with Iraqi authorities fighting Islamic State.
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