Hawzah News Agency (Nineveh & Mosul, Iraq) - According to an Iraqi Defense Ministry statement, 15 Daesh terrorists were killed after Iraqi aircrafts struck militant outposts near Mosul on Wednesday, the al-Sumaria satellite television network reported.

The attacks destroyed a Daesh command center as well as several tunnels, on which the terrorist group has relied for years to mount surprise attacks.  

The Iraqi Joint Operations Command also said a number of militant commanders were killed when a vehicle in which they were traveling in was hit in an airstrike on the eastern outskirts of Mosul.

Among those killed was the self-proclaimed Daesh governor of Mosul, identified as Haqqi Esmaeil Owaid also known as Abu Ahmed. Another man identified as Abu Maha, in charge of Daesh intelligence affairs, was also killed in the airstrike.

Additionally, three civilians lost their lives and four others were injured on Wednesday evening when a Daesh drone fired a rocket at the Nabi Younis market east of Mosul.

Iraqi army forces, backed by pro-government Hashd al-Sha’abi fighters and Kurdish forces, launched a joint operation last October to regain control of Mosul from Daesh terrorists.