At least 24 Iraqi people were killed and dozens more injured in clashes with members of the Daesh terrorist group in Iraq’s northern Saladin province, local officials said.

Saladin police chief Ghazwan al-Jubouri said the clashes took place early Friday morning and at least 24 people, including 20 police officers, were killed in the fighting while another 60 were injured.

Al-Jubouri said the clashes ended and the situation was under control, adding that there were an unspecified number of security forces that went missing.

Officials said earlier that around 60 Daesh militants infiltrated the Mutaibijah region of Saladin coming down from the Hamrin mountains and clashed with police for several hours.

Iraq has suffered a devastating security vacuum since mid-2014, when Daesh captured the northern city of Mosul along with vast swathes of territory in the country’s northern and western regions.

In recent months, the Iraqi army — backed by U.S.-led airstrikes and local allies on the ground — has since managed to retake much of the territory lost earlier to Daesh.

Nevertheless, the terrorist group remains in firm control of several parts of the country, including Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city.

Source: Anadolu