Iraqi Forces Kill 22 IS Soldiers In Anbar Province – OfficialNews WAALI

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik – March 12, 2023) Iraqi security forces killed 22 members of the Islamic State terrorist group (banned in Russia) in the western province of Anbar, the head of the anti-terrorist service said on Sunday.

Abd al-Wahhab al-Saedi told a news briefing that “22 terrorists, including well-known leaders, were killed” in the operation that was planned in complete secrecy, according to the Iraqi News Agency.

The Islamists were traced to the westernmost region of Rutba, a vast expanse of arid land that al-Saedi described as “complex and difficult to access.” He said most of the militants were wearing explosive belts.

The Iraqi army declared the defeat of IS in 2017, but the UN says IS remains active in many pockets of the country, including in rural parts of Kirkuk, Salah Al-Din, Diyala, Nineveh and Anbar provinces. .