Airstrikes kill 'dozens of Daesh' in Iraqi district

By Ali Jawad and Amir al-Hassani

BAGHDAD (AA) - Between 40 and 50 suspected Daesh fighters were killed during airstrikes in northern Tal Afar district on Friday, the Ministry of Defense said in a statement Friday.

Iraqi government forces are getting ready to launch an attack on Daesh terrorist organization and recapture Tal Afar district, located some 65 kilometers (40 miles) from Mosul city, where a predominantly Turkmen population, including Shia and Sunni residents, live.

Preparations for the new campaign come after Iraqi forces backed by the U.S.-led international coalition forces recaptured the city of Mosul earlier this month from Daesh after a nine-month military campaign.

In a statement, the ministry said apart from killing dozens of suspected Daesh fighters in airstrikes, a large warehouse of weapons, a number of weapons-laden vehicles, and 12 booby-traps and armored vehicles were seized as a result of the strike, the statement said.

Suspected Daesh members were also seen transporting their dead fighters to Tal Afar General Hospital in Tal Afar district, the statement added.

Meanwhile, thousands of pro-government Shia militia fighters have been called in to join the battle to recapture Iraq’s northern Tal Afar district.

“3,000 reservists have been called in to participate in the battle of Tal Afar liberation," the Hashd al-Shaabi-affiliated Al-Abbas division said in a statement.

Separately, seven people were wounded in a suspected car explosion that targeted a restaurant in the district of Tuz Khurmatu in northern Iraq’s Salahaddin province, Army Capt. Saad Mohamed told Anadolu Agency Friday.

The Tuz Khurmatu district is a disputed area between Baghdad and Erbil, and inhabited by Turkmen and Kurds.