Coalition airstrike in W. Iraq kills Daesh commander

By Suleiman al-Qubaisi

ANBAR, Iraq (AA) - A Daesh commander was killed on Friday in an airstrike carried out by a U.S.-led coalition in Iraq’s western Anbar province near the Syrian border, according to an Iraqi military source.

Coalition warplanes targeted a Daesh vehicle near the Al-Bisloom Bridge in the border city of Al-Qaim, Army Colonel Walid al-Duleimi told Anadolu Agency.

Situated near Iraq’s border with Syria, Al-Qaim sits roughly 350 kilometers west of Ramadi, regional capital of Anbar province.

According to al-Duleimi, Friday’s airstrike resulted in the death of several militants, including local Daesh commander Mahmoud Ghossah al-Hayyani.

Daesh overran Al-Qaim, along with vast swathes of land in northern and western Iraq, in 2014.

In recent months, Iraqi forces and their tribal allies -- supported by the U.S.-led coalition -- have recaptured significant territory in Anbar from the terrorist group.