SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Iraqi forces thwarted an attempt by Islamic State (ISIS) militants to infiltrate into Iraq from Syria, Iraq’s military said on Sunday.
Iraqi Joint Operations Command said units of the army had responded to an “infiltration attempt by a terrorist group” to cross the Syrian border to Iraq from Dukji area west of Mount Sinjar.
The Iraqi military, meanwhile, clashed with another “terrorist group” on the mountain after they opened fire at the army, it said in a statement.
“The terrorist group fled towards Syrian territory after clashes continued half an hour,” the joint operations commander stated.
One Iraqi soldier was killed in clashes with the militants, according to the statement.
Iraq has tightened security along 600 km border with Syria to curb the movement of ISIS militants, drug smuggling and other illegal activities.
The federal government announced victory over ISIS by the end of 2017 after Iraqi and Kurdish forces backed by U.S.-led Coalition regained control of areas once captured by the militant group.
Despite its defeat, ISIS still poses a threat to the security and stability of the country as there are still sleeper cells in Iraq.
