Iraq: 5 fishermen killed in suspected IS attack

BAGHDAD – An Iraqi security official says five fishermen have been killed in an attack by Islamic State group militants on a camp site near the Therthar lake, 100 kilometres (60 miles) northwest of Baghdad.

Naim Kaoud, head of the Anbar province security council, says the militants attacked the fishermen’s site in the early hours of Saturday. Kaoud says three of the militiamen were wounded in a subsequent firefight.

A federal Iraqi security official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of media regulations, confirmed the casualties.

Hundreds of IS fighters have slipped into Iraq from Syria, The Associated Press reported Friday, to link up with 5,000 to 7,000 militants already in the country. The militants are believed to be behind a string of ambushes, kidnappings and killings in the countryside.