By Suleiman al-Qubeisi
BAGHDAD
A senior Iraqi security official said on Sunday that 37 militants from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) were killed in ongoing clashes with government forces in the restive city of Fallujah in the western Anbar province.
The slain militants, including two snipers, were killed during confrontations with Iraqi forces in different parts of Fallujah, Anbar Operations Chief Maj. Gen. Rashid Feleih told Anadolu Agency.
"We also detonated four explosives-laden vehicles and nine explosive devices," he added.
Since last December, the Iraqi army has been battling militants in Anbar, of which Fallujah is a key city.
Since the offensive began, hundreds of civilians in Fallujah and Ramadi, the provincial capital, have been killed and injured, according to government officials.
Fallujah has been largely inaccessible to Iraqi security forces since ISIL militants – whom the government claims are linked to al-Qaeda – seized control of the city.
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