Officer, soldier killed in roadside bomb blast in Anbar

Anbar (IraqiNews.com) An army officer and a lower rank soldier were killed on Wednesday when a roadside bomb exploded on a highway wast of Anbar, according to a security source.

The explosive device exploded when an army patrol was passing on a highway west of Ramadi, a security source in the province told Alsumaria News.

Islamic State has stepped attacks across Iraq coinciding with defeats it has been sustaining in Mosul, its largest stronghold in Iraq of which Iraqi government troops have recaptured a half since October.

The group has maintained smaller strongholds in western Anbar towns since 2014, but no official campaign has been declared yet by the government to drive militants out of those regions as the Iraqi government invests most of its military effort in Mosul. Anbar’s security command, backed by tribal troops, launched early January a brief onslaught against the Islamic State in western Anbar, and managed retake a few villages before halting again.

Iraqi and U.S-led coalition air forces regularly carry out airstrikes targeting IS hideouts in western Anbar, killing several militants and destroying defensive facilities belonging to the extremist group.

On Tuesday, a roadside bomb planted at al-Sakkar region, west of the province, killed two army personnel.