A series of United States-led air and ground assaults in Iraqi flashpoints has killed at least 41 suspected rebels, the American military said on Tuesday.
Eight militants were killed and 11 detained in separate ground and air assaults in Iraq’s northern province of Kirkuk and central province of Salaheddin, it said, adding that both operations were aimed at al-Qaeda.
The military also said it had arrested an alleged weapons smuggler known to distribute guns brought from Iran to Iraqi extremist groups, in a raid on Tuesday in Baghdad.
On Monday, in a major operation in the town of Gobia in the province of Diyala, north-east of Baghdad, US and Iraqi troops killed 33 militants.
”The pre-dawn assault, involving several hundred Iraqi and coalition forces, defeated numerous small-arms attacks throughout the day resulting in a combined 13 insurgents killed,” a military statement said.
American attack helicopters supporting the ground forces killed another 20 suspected insurgents, it said, adding that many weapons were found during the operation.
The military said the clashes occurred when security forces were carrying out a mission to restore essential services to the nearby key town of Khalis.
US and Iraqi forces have been engaged in a series of operations in Diyala, the second most dangerous region in Iraq after Baghdad, in a bid to flush out al-Qaeda militants.
The province, north-east of the capital, has experienced brutal violence since Shi’ite and Sunni sectarian conflict broke out last year across Iraq. — AFP
