It was one of the deadliest targets the Iraqi military has hit in recent months.
Iraqi security officials said gunmen from the Islamic State extremist group attacked an army barracks in a mountainous area north of Baghdad early Friday, killing 11 soldiers.
Officials said the attack took place in al-Azeem district, an open area north of Bakuba in Diyala province. The circumstances of the attack were not immediately clear, but two officers spoke The Associated Press Militants of the Islamic State group entered the barracks around 3 a.m. local time and shot dead soldiers.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to issue an official statement.
The brazen attack, more than 120 kilometers (75 miles) north of the capital Baghdad, was one of the deadliest targeting Iraqi forces in recent months.
The Islamic State group was largely defeated in the country in 2017, although it remains active through sleeper cells in several areas. Terrorists from the Sunni Muslim extremist group still operate, often targeting security forces, power stations and other infrastructure.
In October, IS militants armed with machine guns raided a Shiite-dominated village in Diyala province, killing 11 civilians and injuring several others. Officials at the time said the attack took place when the militants kidnapped the villagers and their ransom demands were not met.
Army personnel were sent to the village where the attack took place on Friday and security forces were deployed in the surrounding areas, officials said. More details were not immediately available, and the Iraqi military did not immediately comment.
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