A tribal leader said government forces and allied Sunni tribesmen repelled an attack by Islamic State militants on a town between two militant-held cities in the western Anbar Province.
Sheikh Rafie al-Fahdawi said Tuesday the offensive started shortly before midnight to capture the town of Khaldiya, between Fallujah and Ramadi, Anbar’s provincial capital, which the IS group seized over the weekend, ABC News reported.
Al-Fahdawi said the militants captured a small village outside Khaldiya, but no troops or tribal fighters were killed in the clashes.
On Sunday, IS militants captured Ramadi in their most significant advance since a US-led coalition began launching airstrikes against the extremists last summer.
Meanwhile, The UN said in its latest report that nearly 25,000 people have fled from Ramadi since IS captured the Iraqi city from government forces over the past few days.
IS insurgents seem defiant as they spread out in anticipation of the fight with Shiite militias, asked to deploy by the government in the wake of the government forces’ defeat.
However, US officials warned that the use of Shiite militias to try to take back Ramadi risks unleashing more sectarian bloodletting.
One US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, described Ramadi as “a powder keg” and said any use of militia has “got to be dealt with very, very delicately.”
