Bodies of over 50 Islamic State members found, south of Mosul
A cemetery for people who were killed in the clashes is seen at a grave in a schoolyard east of Mosul, Iraq, January 11, 2017. Picture taken 11, 2017. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad
Speaking to BasNews, Cap. Iyad Ziyad said “security troops found the bodies of Islamic State members including Russian, Turkish, Afghan and Syrian militants.”
The militants, according to Ziyad, “were killed by members of the militant group due to fleeing battles.”
Nationalities of most of the dead ones were recognized, he added.
Thousands of Islamic State militants as well as Iraqi civilians were killed since the government campaign, backed by paramilitary troops and the coalition was launched in October 2016.
Islamic State continues to launch sporadic attacks across Iraq against troops. Security reports indicate that the militant group still poses threat against stability in the country. The group still has dormant cells, through which it carries out attacks, across Iraq like it used to do before 2014.
A total of 75 Iraqi civilians were killed, while 179 others were injured due to acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in Iraq in September 2018, according to casualty figures by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI).
In December, Iraq announced gaining control on all the territories that were captured by Islamic State, since 2014.