Iraqi forces repel IS attack near Saudi border

Iraqi border guards on Saturday repelled an attack by Islamic State (IS) militants on an outpost near the border with Saudi Arabia in western Iraqi province of Anbar, a local security source told Xinhua.

The militants attacked Makr al-Nu'am border outpost with machine guns and a suicide car bomb. The border guards killed nine attackers after three hours of fierce clashes, leaving three guards dead and five others wounded.

"The border outpost is under full control of the border guards after defeating the IS militants," the source said.

The Iraqi border points have been facing frequent attacks by the IS groups in Iraq's largest province of Anbar, which stretches in the volatile Sunni Arab area west Baghdad to the borders with Syria, Jordan and Saudi Arabia. Endit