By Xinhua,
Baghdad : Iraqi security forces backed by U.S. troops launched Tuesday a new operation against al-Qaida militants in Diyala province northeast of Baghdad, an Iraqi military spokesman said.
“I can confirm that the operation begun in Diyala early in the morning to chase terrorists from the al-Qaida and other criminal gangs,” Major-General Mohammad al-Askari, spokesman of the Ministry of Defense said.
Askari also said that other goals for the operation code-named “Glad Tidings” is to eliminate smuggling corridors in the areas surrounding Diyala.
A curfew has been imposed on Diyala province early in the morning until further notice due to the operation conducted by U.S. and Iraqi troops, he said.
Diyala province, which stretches from the eastern edges of Baghdad to the Iranian border, has long been bastion for al-Qaida in Iraq network.
The operation in the province came as the U.S. and Iraqi security forces have been conducting major offensives against extremist Sunni and Shiite militiamen across the war-torn country.