Two US soldiers killed in clashes with IS in Iraq

(AFP) Baghdad, Ta. March 9, 2020, Monday

Two US soldiers have been killed during a military operation alongside Iraqi forces fighting an Islamic State (IS) group in Iraq, anti-jihadi allies said.

Enemy forces have killed two US service members (soldiers). Two US soldiers lost their lives as they cleared the ISIS terrorist stronghold in the mountainous areas of northern central Iraq, the Allies said in a list.

The names of the dead US troops were not mentioned in the list, but they were providing advice and cooperation with Iraqi security forces. The US-led coalition has provided training and air support to Iraqi forces since 2014, after much of northern Iraq was occupied by ISIS and much of Syria was occupied.

The group declared 'Caliphate' (a situation related to the Caliphate) and implemented a ruthless form of Islamic law. The Iraqi army, backed by Allied forces, expelled the jihadists from all urban bases in heavy fighting and declared victory in December 2017.

The Allies have since focused on airstrikes and espionage to defeat the jihadist sleeper cell, though the United States killed the high-ranking Iranian general Kasam Sulaimani in January in a drone attack at the Baghdad airport.

The attack was a breach of Iraqi sovereignty, leading to the demand for the departure of US forces. The Iraqi parliament called for the withdrawal of all foreign forces from the country, and a joint Iraqi operation with allied forces was halted for three weeks, which began in late January.