ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - At least six Islamic State (ISIS) elements were killed in an Iraqi army's operation in Salahaddin province, according to a government statement.
"Air Falcons carried out successful airstrikes using F_16 aircraft targeting a terrorist hideout in the Al-Aith area within the Salahuddin Operations Command Sector,” read a statement from the Iraqi Security Media Cell on Tuesday.
In the operation, six ISIS militants hidding in the bunker were killed, the statement added.
“You are defeated in the deserts and valleys, and we will continue to pursue you with the determination of the brave who love their homeland,” the statement said.
In the meantime, the Shiite Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) announced a force from Brig. 54 of the paramilitary group discovered a significant amount of “missiles and military projectiles" during a security operation in America al-Somood, Anbar.
Iraqi armed forces have recently accelerated their aerial and ground military campaigns against remnants of the extremist ISIS group across parts of the country, including the deserts of Anbar province, the remote regions of Nineveh province and parts of the disputed province of Kirkuk, killing their militants, destroying their hideouts and confiscating myriads of ammunitions in their possession.
ISIS controlled large swathes of territory in parts of Iraq and Syria following their rise in 2014. The group was declared territorially defeated in Iraq in 2017.
The group no longer controls any territory, but they are active in their hit-and-run operations, posing serious danger to security around the areas that they had once controlled.
Despite ongoing efforts to eliminate ISIS, the group remains a significant threat to regional stability and security through its remnants.
The militant group is also active in parts of regions in Syria they had once controlled.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) Forces in late September announced the killing of 37 "terrorists" affiliated to ISIS and an al-Qaeda linked group in two separate "targeted strikes” during the month in Syria.
The US CENTCOM said their operations against ISIS remnants is part of their “ongoing committment” to eliminate the extremist group.
“Th airstrikes are part of CENTCOM’s ongoing commitment, along with partners in the region, to disrupt and degrade efforts by terrorists to plan, organize, and conduct attacks against civilians and military personnel from the U.S., our allies, and our partners throughout the region and beyond,” read the CENTCOM announcement.