BAGHDAD, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi security forces on Monday killed 80 Islamic State (IS) militants during a search campaign in the liberated areas near the city of Tal Afar, the Iraqi military said.
The soldiers of the 15 Infantry Division, backed by helicopter gunships, killed 65 IS militants and 15 suicide bombers wearing explosive belts at a village near the town of Ayadhiyah, some 11 km north of Tal Afar, the Joint Operations Command (JOC) said in a statement.
The troops also destroyed two vehicles and four IS hideouts, it said.
Many of IS militants fled the area and surrendered to the nearby defensive line of the Kurdish Pehmerga forces at the edge of the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan, the statement added.
On August 31, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared full liberation of the city of Tal Afar and surrounding areas from the extremist IS militants.
The PM also vowed to defeat IS group all over Iraq, saying "wherever you (IS militants) are, we are coming for liberation, and you have no choice but to die or surrender."
