Targeted Iraqi airstrike kills 35 ISIS militants south of Kirkuk

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—Iraqi fighter jets targeted an Islamic State (ISIS) gathering south of Kirkuk Friday evening, killing 35 militants, said the Defense Ministry.

The Defense Ministry said in a statement that acting on intelligence information the fighter jets targeted a gathering of ISIS militants in the village of Bashir who were preparing to launch an attack on the nearby town of Taza.

The Defense Ministry said that the airstrike destroyed the Bashir police station where the militants were based.

ISIS captured the Turkmen village of Bashir last year shortly after the group took control of Mosul and Tikrit.

Iraqi forces backed by Shiite militia have launched a number of attacks to expel the ISIS militants from the village without success.