New Delhi ; Seven Islamic State commanders, including the organization’s intelligence and security chief, were killed in an airstrike by the Iraqi air force in western Iraq.

 

According to press service for the Iraqi military and security bodies, the airstrike targeted IS leaders in the western Anbar province yesterday, on the border with Syria.

 

Meanwhile, Iraqi forces thrust into Fallujah, aiming to retake the militant bastion that also raised concerns over the fate of trapped civilians.

 

The Iraqi army is facing fierce resistance and counter attacks as it attempts to storm Falluja, a bastion of IS militant group.

 

On Monday, the army’s offensive came a week after it began efforts to retake the city, just 30 miles west of Baghdad and held by the IS since 2014.

 

An estimated 50,000 civilians are trapped inside, with only a few hundred families escaping so far.

 

Meanwhile IS militants launched a wave of bombings in and around Baghdad.

 

The attacks in the Iraqi capital killed at least 21 people. The Iraqi air force and international coalition jets carried out strikes in support of ground troops.

 

The government says IS now controls around 14 per cent of the national territory, down from 40 per cent in 2014.