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ISIS Big Turban dies in artillery attack in Kirkuk
Kirkuk (IraqiNews.com) Four Islamic State militants were killed as fighter jets shelled a vehicle booby-trapping workshop, southwest of Kirkuk, a local source said.

“Army jets shelled on Monday an IS location in al-Safra village, 45 KM southwest of Kirkuk, leaving four militants, including a prominent leader, killed” the source told AlSumaria News.

“The targeted location was used to booby-trap vehicles and manufacture of bombs,” the source, who preferred anonymity, added.

Kirkuk has a mixed population of Kurds, Turkmens and Arabs. The southern and western regions in the province have been under IS control since June 2014.

IS holds pivotal regions that link between each of Diyala, Salahuddin and Kirkuk, posing threats to the liberated regions.

Dozens of residents from Hawija and the regions in its vicinity escape to Kirkuk province on a daily basis. Despite the risky routes to the freed regions, the civilians prefer death to staying under IS control.

10 ISIS troops now pining for the fjords in Hawija

Hawija (IraqiNews.com) An airstrike has left ten Islamic State militants killed in Hawija town, west of Kirkuk, the War Media Cell reported.

A statement on Monday said that army fighter jets “launched airstrikes in Hawija, destroying a vehicle booby-trapping workshop in addition to huge amounts of explosives that were inside a store.”

“The shelling left ten militants killed and others injured,” the statement added.

Hawija, located 55 KM west of Kirkuk, has been held by IS since mid-2014, when the group emerged to proclaim an Islamic “caliphate” in Iraq and Syria. The group executed dozens of civilians and security members there, forcing thousands to flee homes.

In May, news reports quoted sources as saying that the extremist group opened alternative headquarters for its so-called “Nineveh State, “Dijlah State”, “Salahuddin State” and “Diyala State” in Hawija.

IS still holds three towns in western Anbar close to the borders with Syria, in addition to a few areas in Salahuddin, Diyala and Kirkuk. The Iraqi government is expected to aim at those strongholds once the Mosul battle is concluded.
Posted by: badanov 2017-07-04
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=491691