Iraqi warplanes kill 7 Islamic State members in Anbar

Anbar (IraqiNews.com) Iraqi army warplanes killed seven Islamic State militants after bombarding their locations in Anbar province, a paramilitary leader was quoted saying on Friday.

Qatari al-Obaidi, a local mobilization troops commander in Anbar, told Almaalomah website that army aviation targeted an underground tunnel belonging to the group in Wadi Jaal in Hit, west of the province, leaving more than seven militants dead.

Iraq declared victory over Islamic State militants in December, ending three years of operations to retake territories occupied by the militants to declare a self-styled “caliphate”.

Anbar’s town of Rarwa, close to borders with Syria, was the last IS bastion recaptured by the Iraqi forces. The government had said its forces regained full control over the borders with Syria, but militants have staged occasional attacks from there, prompting the government to carry out military raids on the group’s locations inside Syria.