Iraqi paramilitary troops kill three Islamic State fighters in Diyala

Diyala (Iraqinews.com) – Paramilitary troops of al-Hashd al-Shaabi killed on Monday three terrorists of the Islamic State group in Diyala province, a security source was quoted as saying.

“A force from al-Hashd al-Shaabi killed three IS members near Hamrin Mountains in Diyala,” Iraqi website Almaalomah quoted the source as saying.

“The security forces, backed by al-Hashd al-Shaabi, will continue to purge areas, where Islamic State gangs spread in Adhaim, Hamrin and other cities,” the source added.

In January 2015, Iraqi forces announced liberation of Diyala province from Islamic State extremist militants who proclaimed an “Islamic Caliphate” in Iraq and Syria in 2014.

The province has seen months of fighting between Iraqi troops and IS militants especially in the Jalawla and Saadiyah areas in the province’s north and areas near the town of Muqdadiyah.

Iraq declared the collapse of Islamic State’s territorial influence earlier in November with the recapture of Rawa, a city on Anbar’s western borders with Syria, which was the group’s last bastion in Iraq.

IS declared a self-styled “caliphate” in a third of Iraq and neighboring Syria in 2014. A government campaign, backed by a U.S.-led international coalition and paramilitary forces, was launched in 2016 to retake IS-held regions, managing to retake all havens, most notably the city of Mosul, the group’s previously proclaimed capital.