Nine army personnel killed in confrontations against IS near Tal Afar
A military vehicle of Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) forces is seen at the site of car bomb attack during a battle with Islamic State militants in Andalus neighborhood of Mosul, Iraq, January 17, 2017. REUTERS/Alaa Al-Marjani
“Around 40 IS militants on board of cars launched, late on Monday, an attack against military units of the army’s 73rd brigade at Qasabet al-Ra’ie, in Aiyadhiya, located 11 KM from Tal Afar,” Cap. Mohamed Shilah al-Ameri, of the army’s 9th division command, said on Tuesday.
“Nine soldiers, including two officers, were killed during confrontations. Four military vehciles were destroyed. Three bodies of the militants were found,” Ameri added.
In related news, eighty militants, including 15 suicide bombers, were killed during the operations carried out by the army.
A previous report by the War Media Cell said the militants were killed while the army’s 15th division, backed by fighter jets, was purging the village.
Iraqi troops were able to liberate Tal Afar on August 31. PM Haidar al-Abadi announced in a televised speech on August 20 the beginning of operations to recapture the town, which has been held by the militants since 2014, when the extremist group first emerged to proclaim its self-styled ‘caliphate’. This came after 40 days of declaring victory in Mosul, the group’s former capital, where operations lasted between October to July.
Joint troops then recaptured Aiyadhiya, located 11 KM away from Tal Afar, after invading it on August 29.
A monthly count by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI), which excludes security members deaths, said 297 Iraqis, were killed and injured due to violence and armed conflicts during the month of ِAugust. Baghdad was the most affected province with 45 deaths and 135 injuries.