12 IS militants, 9 civilians killed in airstrikes in western Iraq

At least 12 militants affiliated with the extremist Islamic State (IS) group and nine civilians were killed on Wednesday in airstrikes in an IS-held town near Iraq's western border with Syria, security and medical sources said.

An airstrike, believed to be conducted by the U.S.-led coalition aircraft, bombed two IS positions in the town of al-Qaim in Iraq's western province of Anbar, destroying the positions and leaving 12 militants killed and five others wounded, a source from Anbar's provincial Operations Command told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

Another airstrike occurred at night and struck a residential building in the central town, killing nine people and wounding 20 others, a medical source from the provincial health department said.

The attacks come as the Iraqi security forces backed by anti-IS international coalition are carrying out a major offensive to drive out the IS militants from its last major stronghold in and around Mosul. Endit