Iraqi paramilitary forces thwart Islamic State attack against borders with Syria
Members of the Islamic State. File Photo.
A statement by al-Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization Forces) said, “troops of the 29th brigade repelled an attack by IS members against Tal Sufuk border region.”
The attackers, according to the statement, carried out the attack using booby-trapped vehicles. The forces “managed to inflict huge losses in lives and equipment against them.”
“PMFs continue to secure the border strip with Syria against violations that the militants carry out every now and then,” the statement added.
Last month, the Iraqi Media News Agency quoted Farhan Mohamed al-Duleimi, member of the Anbar provincial council as saying that intelligence information from Syria confirmed presence of IS members near al-BuKamal region in Syria to launch attacks against Qaim, located near Iraqi-Syrian borders, and that they prepared for suicide attacks to target military units deployed on borders between Iraq and Syria.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi announced, in December, full liberation of Iraqi lands, declaring end of war against IS members.
Thousands of IS militants as well as Iraqi civilians were killed since the government campaign, backed by paramilitary troops and the coalition was launched in October 2016 to fight the militant group, which declared a self-styled “caliphate” from Mosul in June 2014.