7 Peshmerga, 3 civilians killed in Daesh/ISIS attack in northern Iraq

ERBIL, Iraq

Seven Peshmerga soldiers of the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) and three civilians were killed early Friday in an attack by Daesh/ISIS terrorists in northern Iraq, according to security sources.

Members of the terrorist group initially targeted a village near Mosul's Mahmur district, killing three civilians.

Peshmerga forces who were transferred to the region following the attack fell into an ambush set by the terror group, Peshmerga Commander Nejat Hule told Erbil-based broadcaster Rudaw.

Seven soldiers were killed in the clashes, Hule said.

On Sunday, five Peshmerga soldiers were killed in a separate suspected Daesh/ISIS attack in Kolju district in the Garmian region of northern Iraq, a KRG officer said on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to brief the media.

He said four other soldiers were wounded in the attack.

In 2017, Iraq declared victory over Daesh/ISIS by reclaiming all territories the terrorist group controlled since the summer of 2014, which was estimated to be about a third of the country’s territory.

The group, however, still maintains sleeper cells in large areas in Iraq and occasionally launches sporadic attacks.

*Writing by Zehra Nur Duz in Ankara