Shalal al-Naji, member of the Anbar Provincial Council, told Rudaw that earlier this morning two ISIS suicide bombers had infiltrated Garma town and targeted a Hashd al-Asha'ari checkpoint, killing eight and wounding four including Iraqi army soldiers and Hashd al-Asha'ari fighters.
Naji added that at the site of the explosions, lots of gunfire was heard, indicating there were possibly ISIS cells inside the town.
An officer of the Garma Hashd al-Asha'ari announced that one of the ISIS suicide bombers was killed by the Iraqi army and their tribal fighters before he detonated his payload.
Hashd al-Watani and Hashd al-Asha’ari are both Sunni paramilitaries (PMUs).
ISIS still enjoys a considerable amount of control over territory in northern Iraq despite major setbacks the group has recently suffered at the hands of Iraqi armed forces and their defeat in Mosul.
The extremist group still holds Ana, Qaim, Rawa, and segments of territories in Rutba, as well as the Qaim border crossing in Anbar.
The group also controls parts of Tal Afar west of Mosul, Rashad, Riyaz, some five hundred villages in Kirkuk, and a number of villages and areas in western Diyala province.
