ERBIL

Iraqi Peshmerga killed 28 Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant militants and injured 16 others in clashes close to Erbil, a Kurdish commander said Thursday.

Mahmoud Sharif, Peshmerga commander, said the clashes took place in Hazir, Mahmour and Gouver fronts located near Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s semiautonomous Kurdistan Regional Government.

"ISIL group attacked Peshmerga-controlled regions overnight and the clashes continued till morning," Sharif told The Anadolu Agency.

Sharif said the militant group attacked with vehicles and arms seized from Iraqi army. "We managed to push them back with support of international coalition airstrikes," he said.

"Our troops neutralized the militant vehicles with German-made anti-tank weapons," he added.

Peshmerga said some of their Kurdish troops suffered injuries.

Also, clashes between Peshmerga and ISIL militants were continuing in Iraq's north, he added.

The terrorist group ISIL overran vast swathes of territories in Iraq and Syria last year, prompting the U.S. to form an international coalition to fight it.

The U.S.-led coalition has launched numerous airstrikes against ISIL targets in Iraq and Syria in recent months.