Daesh truck bombs leave 17 Iraqi soldiers dead near Ramadi

Military officials say more than a dozen Iraqi army soldiers have lost their lives when members of the Takfiri Daesh terrorist group carried out truck bomb attacks against government forces in the country’s embattled western province of Anbar.

An army colonel, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the extremists killed at least 17 soldiers with bomb attacks in Jarayshi district, located 10 kilometers (6 miles) north of the provincial capital city of Ramadi, on Thursday.

Daesh Takfiris also laid a siege to an army regiment, seized a bridge and cut a key supply route linking Ramadi to Tharthar area, situated 120 kilometers (74 miles) northwest of the capital, Baghdad.

An unnamed officer said the bombings were meant to slow the army’s advance as it is preparing to mount an offensive to recapture a nearby region from Daesh militants. The liberation of the militant-held area would completely sever Daesh terrorists’ supply routes to Fallujah, located roughly 69 kilometers (43 miles) west of Baghdad.

Also on Thursday, two civilians were killed and seven others sustained injuries when an improvised explosive device went off near a commercial district in the al-Obeidi neighborhood of eastern Baghdad.

Elsewhere in Baghdad’s southwestern neighborhood of Hayy al-A’amel, a bomb attack struck an outdoor market, killing a civilian and injuring eight others.

A roadside bomb also detonated in Baghdad’s southeastern neighborhood of Arab Jabour, leaving a police officer dead and four others injured.

The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq says a total of 741 Iraqis were killed and 1,374 others injured in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in April.

According to the UN mission, the number of civilian fatalities stood at 410. Violence also claimed the lives of 331 members of the Iraqi security forces. A great portion of the fatalities was recorded in Baghdad, where 232 civilians were killed.

Gruesome violence has plagued the northern and western parts of Iraq ever since Daesh Takfiris launched an offensive in the country in June 2014, and took control of portions of Iraqi territory.

The militants have been committing vicious crimes against all ethnic and religious communities in Iraq, including Shias, Sunnis, Kurds, Christians and others.

Iraqi army soldiers and fighters from allied Popular Mobilization Units are seeking to win back militant-held regions in joint operations.