9 Islamic State militants killed and wounded in Kirkuk mortar shelling
Mortar shelling. File photo.
A security source told Ikhnews that the bombardment left four dead and five seriously injured. It was not clear who shelled the area.
The source said attacks targeting Islamic State in the province have escalated since government forces recaptured the eastern side of Mosul, the extremist group’s largest stronghold in Iraq, and the start of operations to secure roads in northern Salahuddin.
Since their emergence in 2014 to establish a self-styled “Islamic State” in Iraq, Islamic State militants have been holding several Iraqi towns, including regions in southwestern Kirkuk.
The group has been sustaining serious defeats to Iraqi government forces since the government launched a major campaign to retake Mosul in October. Some sources have said that the Iraqi government is awaiting for the full recapture of Mosul before embarking on similar security campaigns to attack the group’s remaining pockets in other provinces like Kirkuk, Anbar and Salahuddin.
At least 191.000 civilians have left homes in Mosul and Kirkuk to escape Islamic State violence or battles between the group and government forces in Kirkuk and Mosul.