Baghdad, Nov 14 (IANS): Iraqi forces continued to make progress in the city of Baiji in the north of the capital Baghdad Friday, hoping to retake it after over two weeks of fighting with the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group, military sources confirmed.

Iraqi forces launched a new offence early Friday and managed to retake Albjrara refinery area located south of Baiji and 200 km north of Baghdad, Xinhua reported citing the source.

It added that the forces continued their progress in areas adjacent to the Tigris river from the west, including retaking Baaja and Hinhi villages.

The sources said that Iraqi forces holed up inside the Baiji refinery exchanged fire with IS militants, and the Iraqi forces could unblock the IS's siege of the Baiji refinery, which has been under militants' control since June.

The sources said that a warplane bombed a truck carrying a group of IS militants on their way to the town of Baiji, killing 20 of them, including six local leaders.

The capture of Baiji would let the Iraqi security forces launch another major offensive to expel the IS militants from Tikrit, hometown of deposed Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and the capital of Salahudin province, which has been under the control of the extremist Sunni militants since June 11.