Iraqi Air Force F-16s eliminate ISIS militants in Hamrin mountains
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Iraqi military intelligence sources tell Al Mayadeen that the Iraqi Air Force has eliminated three ISIS terrorists using F-16 fighter jets as part of operation "Swords of Righteousness."
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Iraqi army soldiers gather in the center of Falluja, Iraq, June 17, 2016 (Reuters)
The Iraqi Air Force successfully eliminated three terrorists affiliated with the ISIS organization in an airstrike in the Hamrin Mountains.
Iraqi military intelligence sources told Al Mayadeen that three terrorists were killed in an airstrike in the Hamrin operations sector.
The Iraqi F-16 aircraft carried out the airstrike, targeting ISIS militants in Lake Hamrin, east of the country.
The region, which borders Iran and extends across the provinces of Diyala, Salah Al-Din, and Kirkuk, has been a safe haven for ISIS members who exploit its rugged geography and the difficulty of Iraqi ground forces' ability to operate in the area.
The combination of elements has made airstrikes the only viable option for Iraqi forces to target ISIS militants in the area.
On Friday, the Iraqi military intelligence announced that the Iraqi Air Force targeted ISIS terrorists in the same region, as part of phase five of Operation "Swords of Righteousness."
On May 26, the Iraqi National Intelligence Agency announced the arrest of one of the most dangerous ISIS terrorists in "Wilayat Al-Janoub" (Southern Province as dubbed by the terrorist organization) after a months-long intelligence operation.
The intelligence agency stated that the detainee joined ISIS in 2014 as a fighter within the "Osama bin Laden Brigade" and participated in several terrorist attacks against security forces in areas such as Jurf Al-Nasr, Fallujah, and Mosul.
Furthermore, on May 7, the Iraqi Air Force successfully killed a terrorist group affiliated with ISIS in Diyala province via an airstrike.
The operation targeted against ISIS militants is led by the Iraqi Army in collaboration with Peshmerga forces and the Popular Mobilization Forces.
Earlier in March, 22 ISIS members and officials, including prominent leaders, were killed in a military operation conducted by the army in the Anbar province, in western Iraq, according to Abdulwahhab Al-Saadi, the head of the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service.
Additionally, three commanders were eliminated among 17 terrorists killed in a military operation in western Anbar.
In December 2017, Iraq announced the complete liberation of its territories from ISIS after approximately three and a half years of confrontations with the terrorist organization, which occupied nearly one-third of the country's territory.
