Iraqi militias ‘hit Islamic State targets’ inside Syria

Iraqi militias said Thursday they had launched dozens of missiles targeting Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) militants holed up in a Syrian village across the border. The state-sanctioned Popular Mobilization Forces say they fired 50 missiles at targets in Baghouz village, in the last speck of territory held by the extremists. Iraq’s military has bombed IS posts inside Syria before, but the militias – many of which are backed by Iran – rarely engage in cross-border shelling, AP said. Some PMF factions are fighting inside Syria. IS has lost virtually all the territory it once held in Syria and Iraq, and hundreds of militants are now confined to a small area where they are surrounded by Syrian fighters backed by US-led airstrikes.