BAGHDAD, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- A U.S. service member died during a combat mission with Iraqi security forces in northern Iraq, the U.S. military said on Saturday.
A statement by the U.S. Central Command said the service member died Saturday in Iraq's northern province of Nineveh.
The service member was advising and accompanying the Iraqi security forces on a planned operation, the statement said without giving further details.
It said "the identity of the service member was being withheld until notification of the next of kin."
The incident took place as Iraqi security forces recently announced the launch of an operation to hunt down remnants of Islamic State (IS) militants in northern Iraq.
Over 5,000 U.S. troops have been deployed in Iraq to support the Iraqi forces in the battles against IS militant group, mainly by providing training and advising services.
The troops were part of the U.S.-led international coalition that has also been conducting air raids against IS targets in both Iraq and Syria.
