Six Hashd fighters killed in N. Iraq: Defense Ministry

By Hussein al-Amir

BAGHDAD (AA) - Gunmen ambushed a group of Hashd al-Shaabi fighters on the Mosul-Kirkuk road in northern Iraq leaving six dead, according to police and army sources.

“Daesh terrorists ambushed a group of Hashd fighters late Wednesday as they returned from patrol,” Kirkuk Police Captain Hamed al-Obeidi told Anadolu Agency on Thursday.

In a statement, the Iraqi Defense Ministry confirmed that a Hashd al-Shaabi position on the Mosul-Kirkuk road had come under attack, leaving six Hashd al-Shaabi fighters dead and more than 30 injured.

A predominantly Shia fighting force, Iraq’s Hashd al-Shaabi was drawn up in 2014 with the express purpose of fighting Daesh. In 2017, it was formally incorporated into the Iraqi army.

In late 2017, officials in Baghdad declared that Daesh's military presence in Iraq had been all but destroyed following a three-year war between the terrorist group and the Iraqi army backed by a U.S.-led military coalition.

Nevertheless, the Iraqi army continues to carry out frequent operations against the group’s lingering presence in certain parts of the country.