Diyala (IraqiNews.com) A prominent Islamic State member has been killed in an explosion on the borders between Diyala and Salahuddin provinces, an official announced on Sunday.

“We have information on a mysterious explosion inside a rest house on the outskirts of Mutaibija, on borders between Diyala and Salahuddin, which left one of the leaders, known as ‘the dwarf’, killed” Sadiq al-Husseini, head of the security committee of Diyala provincial council, told AlSumaria News.

“Mutaibija has become one of the shelters for many IS members and leaders recently,” Husseini said calling for a military operation to eliminate presence of the militant group there.

Last week, Islamic State members fell into a trap made by the militant group, which planted explosives at the outskirts of Mutaibija region, on borders between Diyala and Salahuddin. Some of them killed and injured.

Mutaibija has complicated terrain, with numerous hills that serve as a good hideout for militants. Occasional attacks have been witnessed there by Islamic State against government and paramilitary troops deployments since Iraqi forces, backed by a U.S.-led coalition and PMUs, launched a major offensive to retake areas occupied by IS since 2014.

Thousands of IS militants as well as Iraqi civilians were killed since the government campaign, backed by paramilitary troops and the coalition was launched in October 2016 to fight the militant group, which declared a self-styled “caliphate” from Mosul in June 2014. </s> KIRKUK, Iraq (Reuters) - At least five people were killed and 18 injured in a series of explosions in the Iraqi oil city of Kirkuk, medical sources in the city’s general hospital told Reuters on Thursday.

At least six improvised explosive devices went off in the northern city and two more were defused by security forces, the Iraqi military said in a statement. It gave a lower death toll of three and said 16 were injured.

The explosion sites included two malls, an ice cream shop and a butcher’s shop, local media reported.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility but Islamic State militants are active in the area. Iraq declared victory over the group, which once held large swathes of the country, in December 2017.

But Islamic State has switched to hit-and-run attacks aimed at undermining the Baghdad government.

Its fighters have regrouped in the Hamrin mountain range in the northeast, which extends from Diyala province, on the border with Iran, crossing northern Salahuddin province and southern Kirkuk. </s> An Iraqi policeman was killed and two others were injured in a roadside bomb blast in eastern Iraq on Tuesday, according to a local police officer.

The device exploded as a police patrol was passing north-east of Baquba city in Diyala province, Captain Habib al-Shammari said.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Al-Shammari said an investigation has been launched into the attack.

Attacks against security forces and civilians have been on the rise in Diyala province in eastern Iraq in recent weeks.

Last December, officials in Baghdad declared that the ISIL terrorist group's military presence in Iraq had been all but dismantled after a three-year war.

However, from time to time, Iraqi officials announce operations against ISIL-affiliated "sleeper cells" in certain parts of the country. </s> A provincial spokesman says a suicide attack against a security checkpoint north of Baghdad has killed at least nine people.

The spokesman for Salahuddin province, Ali al-Hamdani, said the suicide bomber rammed his explosives-laden car during rush hour on Sunday morning into the main checkpoint at the southern entrance of the provincial capital, Tikrit.

Al-Hamdani said five female students, a woman and three policemen were killed. He added that 25 other people were wounded.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks, but Islamic State (IS) militants have claimed multiple similar attacks.

The Sunni extremists frequently launch attacks targeting Iraq’s security forces and civilians in public areas.

In April 2015, Iraqi security forces drove out IS militants from Tikrit, about 130 kilometres north of Baghdad. </s> BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi officials say a pair of suicide bombers detonated their explosives belts at a checkpoint south of Baghdad, killing nine people, including four members of the security forces.

The police and hospital officials said the Sunday attack near the holy Shiite city of Najaf also wounded 22.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, which bore the hallmarks of Islamic militants.

The officials all spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

It came one day after two suicide bombers killed at least 28 people at a Baghdad market.

That attack was claimed by the Islamic State group.

Baghdad has seen near-daily attacks blamed on Islamic militants since 2003. </s> Baghdad (Iraqinews.com) – Seven Iraqi policemen were killed and injured Tuesday as a bomb blast targeted their police vehicle in Mosul city, a security official was quoted as saying.

“An explosive charge was remotely detonated, while a police patrol was inside a train station, west of Mosul, killing two policemen and injuring five others,” Captain Zayed Omar told BasNews website.

“Security forces immediately rushed to the blast site and carried the bodies of the two officers to the forensic medicine department, while the wounded were moved to a nearby hospital for treatment,” added Omar.

Earlier in the day, a SWAT officer was killed while another was injured after two bombs went off sequentially while a police vehicle was passing by al-Mokhisa village on the outskirts of Abu Saida district in Diyala.”

According to the latest casualty figures recorded by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), a total of 104 Iraqi civilians and policemen were killed and another 177 injured in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in Iraq in March.

In its monthly statement released earlier this month, the UN agency said the number of civilians killed, excluding police, was 84, while 164 others were injured.

Baghdad was the worst affected Governorate, with 124 civilian casualties (33 killed, 91 injured), followed by Salahuddin with 12 killed and 26 injured, and Anbar with 11 killed and 22 injured.

Though most of the daily bombings go without a claim of responsibility, the Islamic State group is expected to be behind many. </s> Diyala (IraqiNews.com) Joint security forces have killed three Islamic State militants in an operation, northeast of Baquba, a source from Diyala province said on Friday.

“Joint troops of the army and the mobilization forces killed three IS members near Hamreen lake, northeast of Baquba,” the source told AlSumaria News.

On Wednesday, news reports quoted sources as saying that Iraqi troops killed Abu Nabil al-Iraqi, the mastermind of several terrorist attacks launched by Islamic State, and seven of his aides in a military operation in northeastern Diyala. A-Iraqi used to provide the militant group with financial and logistic support to target security forces in Diyala

Thousands of IS militants as well as Iraqi civilians were killed since the government campaign, backed by paramilitary troops and the coalition, was launched in October 2016 to fight the militant group.

In December, Abadi announced full liberation of Iraqi lands, declaring end of war against IS members. However, Islamic State continues to launch sporadic attacks across Iraq against troops. Security reports indicate that the militant group still poses threat against stability in the country.

As many as 3,298 civilians were killed and 4,781 others were wounded in 2017, excluding Anbar civilian casualty figures for November and December, which are not available, UNAMI said in a report in December. </s> (Hatha al-Youm | Iraq News )- TEHRAN (FNA)- Several people have been killed and more than a dozen others wounded in a series of blasts that struck the city of Kirkuk, the Iraqi military announced.At least six improvised explosive devices went off on Thursday in the Northern city and two more were defused by security forces, the military said in a statement, Al-Jazeera reported.It gave a death toll of three people, while 16 others were wounded.Unidentified security officials told The Associated Press news agency that the blasts killed at least four people and wounded 23, while medical sources in Kirkuk's general hospital told Reuters news agency that at least five people were killed and 18 wounded.There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but Saad Harbya, the head of Kirkuk security operations, blamed the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL or ISIS) armed group.The explosions reportedly struck in the centre of Kirkuk, in a commercial area that has several shopping centres, cafes and restaurants, sending people fleeing in panic.The blasts went off in quick succession after iftar, the meal that breaks daylong fasting during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, when streets are typically crowded with shoppers and people out having dinner.Police blocked off all roads leading to the blast sites and were allowing only ambulances to transfer the wounded to nearby hospitals.Iraq declared victory over the Islamic State, which once held large swaths of the country, in December 2017.But militants have switched to hit-and-run attacks aimed at undermining the central government in Iraq's capital, Baghdad.Its fighters have regrouped in the Hamrin mountain range in the Northeast, which extends from Diyala province, on the border with Iran, crossing Northern Salahuddin province and Southern Kirkuk. </s> Local media reported that the incident took place in Qadisiyah district on Sunday, with both security forces and civilians believed to be among the casualties.

Separately, gunmen raided a checkpoint in Najaf’s al-Meshkhab area, but the number of possible casualties remains unclear, Press TV reported.

Meanwhile, local sources have reported several mortar attacks around Najaf Province.

The Daesh (ISIL or ISIS) terror group has claimed responsibility for the bomb attack. The terrorists have in recent months increased their acts of violence across Iraq in revenge for the blows they have been taking from Iraqi armed forces in the battle for the liberation of Mosul.

On Saturday, the capital Baghdad also witnessed bloodshed. At least 28 people lost their lives in a bomb explosion at a crowded market. The attack was later claimed by Daesh.

In another development on Saturday, an improvised explosive device went off in the district of Yarmuk in western Baghdad, leaving a civilian wounded.

Two more people were also injured after a magnetic bomb exploded on al-Qanat Highway in eastern Baghdad

Meanwhile, Baghdad Operations Command spokesman Brigadier General Saad Maan said that five booby-traps had exploded in northwestern Baghdad, killing one person and hurting six others.

Data from monthly reports issued by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) shows that acts of terrorism killed a total of 12,038 Iraqis and injured 14,411 others in 2016.

Iraqi forces advance on Mosul, kill Takfiris

On Saturday, Iraqi forces made fresh gains against Takfiri militants in their push to liberate the northern city of Mosul, the last Daesh stronghold in the country, killing some 200 terrorists.

The commander of Nineveh Liberation Operation, Lieutenant General Abdul Amir Yarallah, said a unit of the Iraqi army had hoisted the national flag over buildings in the village of Arkub, situated in the north of Hudaba neighborhood.

The Arabic-language al-Forat news agency also reported that members of the Popular Mobilization Units, backed by federal police forces, retook the village of Shukran after engaging terrorists and killing a large number of them.

Meanwhile, Iraq’s War Media Cell said policemen had clashed with Daesh elements in Mosul’s southeast, releasing several trapped locals.

Separately, Iraq’s Defense Ministry reported that two militant mortar firing positions and six vehicles had been destroyed in Arkub. Some 55 militants died on the northern front of the Mosul battle.

On the eastern front, two explosives-laden vehicles were destroyed and 45 militants were killed in clashes with Iraqi army soldiers.

In southern Mosul, federal police forces got rid of seven explosives-packed vehicles and killed 86 Daesh terrorists.

Iraqi army troops and allied fighters launched a long-awaited operation to recapture Mosul on October 17.

Defeating Daesh in the city would be a major blow to the Takfiri outfit that began its campaign of terror in northern and western Iraq more than two years ago.

Earlier this week, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said it would take three months to rid the country of Daesh.
Iraqi authorities say an unexplained explosion in Mutaibija, on the border of Diyala and Salahuddin, killed an alleged senior member of the Islamic State.