BAGHDAD, Feb. 29 (Xinhua) -- Three paramilitary tribal fighters were killed on Saturday in an attack by Islamic State (IS) militants near the Iraqi capital Baghdad, the Iraqi military said.
The IS militants opened fire on the government-backed tribal fighters in Hour al-Basha area in northeast of Baghdad, and killed three of them before they fled the scene, a media office affiliated with the Joint Operations Command (JOC) said in a statement.
The Iraqi security forces rushed to the scene and conducted a search campaign looking for the attackers, the statement said.
The security situation in Iraq has been improved since Iraqi security forces fully defeated the extremist IS militants across the country late in 2017.
However, IS remnants have since melted in urban areas or resorted to deserts and rugged areas, carrying out frequent guerilla attacks against security forces and civilians.
