BAGHDAD, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) -- Two people were killed and two others wounded in three attacks by militants of the extremist group Islamic State (IS) on security forces in Salahudin province north of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, a provincial security source said Sunday.
In one of the attacks, IS militants struck an Iraqi army base in Nibai area in the southern part of Salahudin, Colonel Mohammed al-Bazi told Xinhua.
The attack sparked a fierce clash between the two sides, leaving a soldier killed and another wounded, al-Bazi said.
On Saturday night, IS militants clashed with a police force member guarding a gas station in Shirqat area, some 280 km north of Baghdad, killing a guard and wounding a civilian worker in the station, al-Bazi said.
After midnight, a third IS attack targeted a joint army and police unit near a village south of Salahudin's provincial capital Tikrit, some 170 km north of Baghdad, sparking a clash between the two sides, al-Bazi said, adding the attackers later withdrew from the scene without causing casualties.
Over the past few months, IS militants have intensified attacks on Iraqi security forces in the province the militants previously controlled, leaving dozens dead and wounded.
The security situation in Iraq has been improving since Iraqi security forces defeated the IS militants in 2017.
However, IS remnants have since melted into urban centers or deserts and rugged areas, carrying out frequent guerilla attacks against security forces and civilians. Enditem
