After the attack 23 September, the PUK seized the the IUMK-controlled town of Halabjah, but did not oust Jund al-Islam from the villages of Tawela and Biyarah.

BBC: Iraqi Kurds fear new Islamist group

The only -- unlikely -- claim of responsibility for Merah's gun attacks so far has come from a recently-formed central Asian terror group -- Jund al Khilafah (JaK).

CNN: How did Mohammed Merah become a jihadist?

Ansar al-Islam (Supporters of Islam) was established in December 2001 after a merger between Jund al-Islam, led by Abu Abdallah al-Shafi'i and an Islamic Movement splinter group led by Mullah Krekar.

BBC: Profile: Kurdish Islamist movement