Iraq: 11 civilians killed, several injured as IS attacks northeastern village of Baghdad

In another targeted attack, at least 11 civilians were killed after Islamic State (IS) gunmen ambushed a northeastern village of Baghdad on 26 October, the Associated Press reported, citing Iraqi security officials. At least six civilians were injured after the gun firing took place in the predominantly Shi'ite village of al-Rashad northeast of Baqouba in Diyala Province. However, the Iraqi officials were unable to immediately determine the circumstances of the Tuesday attack.

Earlier, the IS militants had kidnapped two villagers and then raided the village when the demands for ransom went unanswered, two Iraqi officials told AP under conditions of anonymity. The officials also confirmed that machine guns were used in the rampage and slaughter of civilians in the Baghdadi village.

Three killed in IS attack on a military vehicle

The attack comes at least a month after IS terrorists killed three persons, including two Iraqi army officers in the Provinces of Diyala and Salahuddin. As per Xinhua reports, the commander of an army battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Jassim al-Shimmary, was killed in the eastern province of Diyala on 15  September. Speaking about the deadly attack, Major Alaa al-Saadi from the provincial police told Xinhua that the incident happened when a roadside bomb planted by IS militants detonated near his military vehicle outside the town of Jalawla. In a separate incident, a group of militants opened fire on a civilian truck that killed the driver on the spot.

According to Major Alaa al-Saadi, the militants targeted the truck driver outside the town of Wajihah near the provincial capital Baquba, some 65 km northeast of Baghdad. Further, he said that the Iraqi soldiers averted two major attacks on military positions in two villages located about 40 km northeast of Baquba. He maintained that the attackers were successful in fleeing from the encounter site.

As per AP, targeted attacks by the IS militants have become "rare" since 2017 after the group was defeated in the country. However, in recent times the presence of sleeper cells in many areas has led to a spike in ambush and kidnappings by the rogue group. The Sunni Muslim extremist group often carries out attacks on civil infrastructure, security forces and power stations.

(Image: AP)