Five Kurdish fighters were killed in an attack blamed on the Islamic State (IS) group in northern Iraq, a region in which jihadists are still active.
The attack, late Saturday evening, took place in the Garmiane region, south of Sulaymaniyah, the second largest city in Iraqi Kurdistan, according to a statement from the Peshmerga ministry.
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A bomb exploded as the vehicle passed by Kurdish fighters (peshmerga), dispatched "
to reinforce forces targeted by ISIS
", according to the statement which gives the names of the five victims and also mentions four wounded. .
The President and Head of Government of Autonomous Kurdistan condemned the attack.
"
We have repeatedly warned against the dangers posed by the terrorists of the Islamic State group
", indicated the Prime Minister of Kurdistan, Masrour Barzani, underlining "
the serious threat to the security of the region and its inhabitants
".
Iraq proclaimed its victory against the IS jihadists at the end of 2017. But they continue to carry out ad hoc attacks against villagers and security forces in the north of the country, especially in the Kirkuk region.
The last major attack claimed by ISIS in Iraq in July targeted a market in the Shiite district of Sadr City in Baghdad, which left some 30 people dead.