22 Daesh militants killed in northern Iraq

By Gamal Badrani and Ibrahim Salih

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AA) - At least 22 Daesh militants were killed in U.S.-led airstrikes and a car bombing in northern Iraq’s Mosul city on Friday.

U.S.-led coalition warplanes struck a Daesh weapons depot in Saadia village in southern Mosul, the Defense Ministry said in a statement.

“Twelve militants were killed in the raid,” it added.

Ten Daesh militants were also killed in a car bombing on the road linking Qayyara district to Makhmour town in northern Iraq, the statement said.

In another development, four people were killed and 17 others injured in two separate attacks in the Iraqi capital Baghdad on Friday.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks, though Iraqi authorities often point the finger at Daesh group.

Iraqi forces have been battling Daesh militants in an attempt to retake territory captured by the terrorist group in northern and western Iraq in 2014.

Iraqi forces are currently planning to launch an offensive to recapture Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, from Daesh, which overran the city in 2014.

On Thursday, Iraqi forces, backed by U.S.-led airstrikes, captured Qayyara, a strategic important area near Mosul.