Iraqi security media says 'important' IS hideout destroyed, militants killed

An "important" northern Iraq hideout used by Islamic State (IS) group militants this week was reduced to rubble in an airstrike this week, security media said on Wednesday evening.

The Security Media Cell (SMC) - linked to the Iraqi prime minister's office - announced that security forces targeted the IS centre in Kirkuk governorate, which was used as a headquarter for IS militants in northern Iraq.

On its Twitter page on Wednesday, the SMC said "the Joint Operations Command demolished IS hideouts in the Hamrin mountain range and killed a number of terrorists" turning the base to rubble. No further details were provided.

قيادة العمليات المشتركة تدك أوكار داعش في سلسلة جبال حمرين وتقتل عدد من الإرهابيين

— خلية الإعلام الأمني🇮🇶 (@SecMedCell) December 7, 2022

IS militants seized Iraqi cities and declared a self-styled caliphate in a large swath of territory in Syria and Iraq in 2014.

The group was formally declared defeated in Iraq in late 2017 following a three-year bloody battle that left tens of thousands dead and cities in ruins.

Its sleeper cells continue to wage a low-level insurgency, carrying out attacks in different parts of the country, including the kidnap and murder of civilians and attacks on security forces.