Fifteen paramilitary personnel killed, injured in IS attack, western Anbar

Anbar (IraqiNews.com) Nine personnel of the Shia-led paramilitary troops were killed, while six others were wounded in an armed attack in western Anbar, BasNews reported.

“Islamic State militants attacked the defense line in Okashat region using all kinds of weapons, leaving nine personnel of al-Hashd al-Shaabi [Popular Mobilization Units] killed and six others profoundly wounded. Three of the troops’ vehicles were destroyed,” a source from the Anbar Operations Command said on Thursday.

“PMUs troops and Iraqi military units have been deployed at the defense line, which is near to the residential area in Okashat, for almost three years,” the source added. “Frequent IS attacks have been seen in areas of Rutba, Okashat and the regions on border with Syria, in west of Anbar, over the past few days.”

Anbar’s western towns of Anah, Qaim and Rawa are still held by the extremist group since 2014, when it occupied one third of Iraq to proclaim a self-styled Islamic Caliphate. Iraqi troops were able to return life back to normal in the biggest cities of Anbar including Fallujah, Ramadi and others after recapturing them.

Violence in the country has surged further with the emergence of Islamic State Sunni extremist militants who proclaimed an “Islamic Caliphate” in Iraq and Syria in 2014.

More than 500 Iraqis were killed and injured during the month of July due to violence and armed conflicts, according to a monthly count by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI).