File Photo: Iraqi army soldiers fire a mortar during clashes with Islamic State militants in the Karma district of Anbar province March 22, 2015. (Reuters)
Iraqi security forces backed by air support used anti-tank missiles to repel Islamic State (IS) group suicide bombers driving explosives-rigged vehicles in Anbar province today, officers said.
An army colonel said security forces used Russian Kornet missiles to destroy two of the vehicles in the Nadhim al-Taqsim area west of Baghdad, while an Iraqi air strike destroyed the third.
Interior ministry spokesman Saad Maan said four vehicles were destroyed, and that the air support came from the US-led coalition against IS.
Security forces also used missiles to repel attacks on Anbar bases on Thursday by jihadists using vehicle bombs - one of the Islamic State group's deadliest tactics.
Last month, IS used an unprecedented wave of truck and car bombs when it seized Ramadi, farther west, after which the US said it would send 2,000 anti-tank systems to help repel such attacks.