US surveillance drone crashes in northern Iraq

By Ali Jawad

BAGHDAD (AA) - A US drone crashed in Iraq’s northern Nineveh province while on a surveillance mission, an Iraqi security source said on Tuesday.

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media, told Anadolu Agency that the drone was on the mission over the Tal al-Shaeer village of Mosul.

The cause of the crash was probably a technical glitch, it added.

So far, no official statement was issued either by the Iraqi authorities or the US military command in the country.

Currently, there are around 3,000 troops, including 2,500 US forces, fighting in the anti-Daesh/ISIS coalition.

In 2017, Iraq with support of the US-led International Coalition declared victory over Daesh/ISIS by reclaiming all of its territory -- about a third of the country’s area -- invaded by the terror group in 2014.

But the terror group still maintains sleeper cells in large areas of Iraq and periodically launches attacks.

The Iraqi army continues to carry out frequent operations against the group in parts of the country.

*Ahmed Asmar in Ankara contributed to this report