Iraq: 18 IS terrorists killed in four separate operations

As many as 18 Islamic State (IS) terrorists were killed in four separate attacks carried out by Iraqi security forces and US-led coalition in the provinces of Anbar and Nineveh, country's military has said.

According to the media office of the Joint Operations Command (JOC), four IS terrorists were killed in an airstrike carried out by US-led coalition aircraft on IS hideout at the south of Sneislah Lake in an area bordering Syria. Four other terrorists were killed in a raid carried out by security forces in the in Akashat area of the province, reported Xinhua news agency.

In a separate statement, the JOC said that seven IS terrorists were killed in an anti-IS operation carried out by the security forces in the Sekheirat area of country's northern province of Nineveh. Vehicles belonging to the terrorists were also destroyed in the operation.

Separately, the U.S.-led coalition aircraft, based on intelligence reports, bombed an IS vehicle and killed three terrorists in a desert area near the border with Syria.

Although the Iraqi government had declared victory over Islamic State in December 2017, the IS terrorists are still active in rural areas of central and northern parts of the country and carry out frequent guerilla attacks against security forces.