BAGHDAD, March 26 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi security forces on Saturday found bodies of four shepherds kidnapped earlier by the extremist Islamic State (IS) group in the northern province of Nineveh, said a local police official.
A joint force from the Iraqi army and police found the bodies in the morning in the Hatra area south of Nineveh's provincial capital Mosul, Major Sabri Yassin from Mosul Police Command told Xinhua.
The security forces have launched a search campaign in the area, looking for the attackers, Yassin added.
Over the past few months, Iraqi security forces have carried out deadly attacks against IS militants to stem their intensified activities.
The security situation in Iraq has improved after Iraqi forces defeated the IS in 2017. Yet IS remnants have since melted into urban centers, deserts and rugged areas, carrying out frequent guerilla attacks against security forces and civilians. ■
