10 Iraqi soldiers killed in IS attack

At least 10 Iraqi soldiers were killed on Tuesday in an attack by Islamic State (IS) militants on a military base in Iraq's western province of Anbar.

IS militants attacked the military base at Sakkar area in east of the town Rutba, some 370 km west of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, at about 5 a.m. (local time), Xinhua news agency reported.

Following fierce clashes between the two sides, the attackers withdrew to the desert, leaving 10 soldiers dead and six others wounded, while the bodies of seven IS militants were left at the scene.

Rutba, which lies on the Baghdad-Amman international road, was taken by the IS in 2014, but was recaptured by the security forces in May 2016.

Observers believe that IS group intensified attacks against Iraqi security forces in other provinces across Iraq, particularly the Sunni provinces of Kirkuk, Salahudin and Anbar to avenge their heavy casualties in Mosul, according to the report.

The Iraqi security forces backed by anti-IS international coalition are carrying out a major offensive to drive out the IS militants from their major stronghold in the western side of Mosul in northern Iraq.

--IANS

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