BAGHDAD, May 22 (Xinhua) -- A policeman and two Islamic State (IS) militants were killed Wednesday in a clash in Iraq's western province of Anbar, the Iraqi military said.
Based on intelligence reports, a police commando identified two wanted IS militants driving a truck near the town of Rutba, some 400 km west of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, according to a statement from the Security Media Cell, a media outlet affiliated with the Iraqi Joint Operations Command.
Policemen chased and clashed with them, killing the two militants, one of whom was wearing an explosive belt, during which a policeman was killed and another wounded, the statement said.
A source from the police command of Anbar province told Xinhua that the police force seized the truck, two machine guns and an explosive belt, adding that the security forces are still searching the area for their hideout.
In a separate incident earlier in the day, a deadly roadside bomb went off near an army vehicle in a village near the town of Tuz Khurmatu in eastern Salahuddin province north of Iraq.
The blast killed two soldiers and injured four others, Mohammed al-Bazi from the provincial police command told Xinhua.
The security situation in Iraq has improved since the defeat of the IS in 2017. However, IS remnants have sneaked into urban centers, deserts, and rugged areas, carrying out frequent guerilla attacks against security forces and civilians. ■
