At least 12 Islamic State militants were killed on Wednesday after an airstrike hit Iraqi provinces of Salahudin and Diyala in a raid, according to security sources.
In Salahudin, an army force raided a house used as an IS hideout at a village in the northwest of the provincial capital Tikrit, some 170 km north of Baghdad, said a statement by Abdul Muhsin Hatem, commander of Salahudin operations, Xinhua reported.
During the raid, the house which appeared to be booby-trapped was detonated, killing an army officer, and after searching the destroyed house, the troops discovered a bunker where 10 IS militants were hiding, sparking a heavy clash that resulted in the killing of all the militants, the statement said.
In Diyala, the Iraqi aircraft conducted an airstrike, based on intelligence reports, on an IS position in a rugged area located near the provincial border with neighbouring Salahudin province, destroying the position and killing two IS militants inside, Sadiq al-Husseini, head of the security committee of Diyala’s provincial council, told Xinhua.
The Iraqi forces are continuing security operations in different areas in central Iraq to track the extremist IS militants and destroy their locations.
Last month, at least 17 ISIS militants were killed after the US carried out an airstrike in southwestern Libya, in coordination with the UN-backed government, according to the United States, Africa Commands.
Some Islamic State militants retreated south into Libya’s desert as the group lost its stronghold in the coastal city of Sirte at the end of 2016.
(With IANS inputs)