30 ISIL terrorists slain in Iraqi army airstrikes

Iran Press TV

Tue Jun 16, 2015 3:40PM

At least 30 members of the Takfiri ISIL terrorist group have been killed in multiple airstrikes carried out by Iraq's air force in the country's conflict-stricken northern province of Salahuddin.

A security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Arabic-language al-Forat news agency on Tuesday that the militants were killed after Iraqi fighter jets carried out precision strikes against ISIL positions in the town of al-Shirqat, about 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of the capital, Baghdad.

The source added that senior militant commanders were among the slain terrorists.

The development comes a day after nine ISIL terrorists were killed and tens of others injured in similar attacks on militant hideouts east of the major city of Mosul, situated some 400 kilometers (248 miles) north of Baghdad.

Meanwhile, Iraqi security and medical officials said on Tuesday that at least seven people have been killed in separate bomb attacks and shooting incidents in Baghdad and elsewhere in the country.

An anti-al-Qaeda Sahwa tribal fighter and his brother were killed when unidentified armed men stormed their house in the capital's southern neighborhood of Latifiyah.

A bomb attack also ripped through a grocery market in Baghdad's southwestern neighborhood of Suwaib, killing a civilian and injuring five others.

At least five schoolgirls lost their lives and four others sustained injuries when a car rigged with explosives went off close to their school in the town of Abu Sayda, located about 90 kilometers (60 miles) north of Baghdad.

The UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) says in May over 1,030 people were killed and another 1,684 were wounded in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in Iraq.

Gruesome violence has plagued the northern and western parts of Iraq ever since ISIL launched an offensive in June 2014, and took control of portions of Iraqi territory. Units of army soldiers coupled with volunteer fighters are seeking to win back militant-held regions in joint operations.

MP/HSN