Security forces destroy four Islamic State tunnels, trench in Salahuddin
Members of the Iraqi Federal Police forces stand inside an underground tunnel dug by Islamic State militants south of western Mosul’s Old City.
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Iraqi army destroyed on Tuesday four tunnels and a trench that were used by Islamic State militants in Makhoul Mount in Salahuddin province.
In a statement, a copy of which was obtained by Mawazin News website, the Military Intelligence Directorate said that its troops, backed by jet fighters, found during a security operation in Makhoul Mount, north of Salahuddin, four tunnels and a 30-meter trench that were used by Islamic State militants.
The troops found a huge amount of rocket launchers, explosive materials, weapons and ammunition inside the tunnels, added the statement.
Former Iraqi prime minister Haider al-Abadi declared the end of military operations against Islamic State in Iraq on December 9, 2017 three years after the militant group captured about a third of Iraq’s territory. On July 10 that year, the former premier had formally declared victory over Islamic State extremists in Mosul, which served as the terrorists’ main urban stronghold.
The jihadist group had seized large swathes of Syria and Iraq in 2014, when it proclaimed a “caliphate” and imposed its rule over some 10 million people.