Baghdad, Jan 6 (IANS): At least 10 security members were killed and dozens wounded in a suicide bomb attack targeting the Iraqi security forces and allied tribesmen in Iraq's Anbar province Tuesday, a provincial security source said.

A suicide bomber blew up his explosive vest at a mosque in the area of Jubba near the town of al-Baghdadi, some 200 km northwest of Iraq's capital Baghdad, killing at least 10 security personnel, the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

The blast was followed by an attack by dozens of Islamic State (IS) militants on the area, sparking heavy clashes with the security forces and allied tribesmen, the source said.

The militants later took control of the Jubba area, which is close to the al-Asad air base, and where American military personnel deployed, and the town of al-Baghdadi, which has been the scene of several battles between the IS militants and its Albu Nimer Sunni tribe in the past few weeks, the source added.

The battles are still under way as the IS militants apparently are trying to seize more territory including the town of al-Baghdadi itself, the source said.

For months, Anbar province has been the scene of fierce clashes between the IS militants and the security forces, which has gained support from some of the local Sunni tribes who rejected the presence of the extremist IS group.

Security in Iraq has drastically deteriorated since June 10, when bloody clashes broke out between Iraqi security forces and the IS militants. The latter later took control of the country's northern city of Mosul and seized swathes of territories in Nineveh and other predominantly Sunni provinces.