Iraqi paramilitary fighter killed in roadside bomb blast in Diyala

Diyala (IraqiNews.com)  A member of Iraqi paramilitary troops fighting the Islamic State died Saturday when a roadside bomb exploded northeast of Diyala province, a security source was quoted saying.

A member of the Popular Mobilization Forces died and another sustained injuries when a roadside bomb exploded in their patrol while passing at Sidlan village, Qarra Tabba, northeast of the province, according to the source.

Iraqi government forces, backed by a United States.-led coalition and paramilitary troops, are currently battling Islamic State militants out of their strongholds in Anbar, Kirkuk and Salahuddin provinces, hoping to mark an end to the self-styled “caliphate” the group declared in 2014 from the city of Mosul.

Operations since October 2016 have so far managed to liberate Mosul, the group’s former capital in Iraq, and Tal Afar town, west of Mosul. A wide-scale offensive was launched earlier on Thursday to retake IS holdouts in Salahuddin and Kirkuk, while a parallel one was launched earlier this week targeting havens in western Anbar.

Violence and armed conflicts left 297 Iraqis dead and wounded during the month of ِAugust, according to a monthly count by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq which excludes security members deaths.