U.S. jet fighters kill 25 Islamic State militants in Kirkuk
Soldiers from the Iraqi Special Forces 2nd Division run to take up positions as troops engage Daesh militants, while pushing through the Samah area and into the Arbagiah neighborhood of Mosul on November 11, 2016. (Photo by AFP)
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – Iraqi security forces killed on Sunday 25 Islamic State terrorists and destroyed two of their hotbeds during air raids in northwestern Kirkuk province, a commander of Iraq’s elite counter-terrorism forces said.
Speaking to Al Ekhbariya news website, Major General Maan al-Saadi, the commander of the Iraqi Special Forces 2nd Division, said that the U.S.-led international coalition warplanes targeted a hotbed of Islamic State near Dibris heights in northwestern Kirkuk, leaving six militants dead.
“Another airstrike by the international coalition killed 19 Islamic State terrorists, who were hiding inside a 500-meter-long tunnel,” al-Saadi said, adding that the two hotbeds were used as hideouts by the slain IS militants.
The Islamic State group appeared on the international scene in 2014 when it seized large swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria, declaring the establishment of an Islamic “caliphate” from Mosul city.
Later on, the group has become notorious for its brutality, including mass killings, abductions and beheadings, prompting the U.S. to lead an international coalition to destroy it.
Despite the group’s crushing defeat at its main havens across Iraq, Islamic State continues to launch sporadic attacks against troops with security reports warning that the militant group still poses a threat against stability in the country.