Friday, March 29, 2024

Baghdad

39 Islamic State fighters killed after foiled attack east of Salahuddin

 39 Islamic State fighters killed after foiled attack east of Salahuddin

Iraqi army forces.

Iraqi army forces
Salahuddin (IraqiNews.com) Thirty-nine fighters from Islamic State were killed on Tuesday after army forces pushed back an attack on troops at Tal Kusaiba, east of Salahuddin, according to a security source.

“By escalating its attacks against security troops in Salahuddin, the group is seeking to hinder any advancement towards Hawija, Kirkuk,” the source told Alsumaria News.

Since they drove out Islamic State militants from the region mid January 2016, security forces have been in control over Tal Kusaiba, fighting off occasional attacks by IS militants there.

Islamic State has escalated attacks across Iraqi provinces, including Salahuddin, since Iraqi government forces managed to retake a half of its largest bastion in the country, the city of Mosul, since October 2016. Observers believe the extremist group is trying to make up for daily losses in Mosul and to relieve security pressure on that front by attacking security and civilians at other cities.

The group has lost at least 3300 of its personnel in the operations at Mosul, and reports have been recurring about internal divisions and fighters’ escapes since government forces launched the offensives to retake Mosul.

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