Baghdad, May 7 (IANS): The Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) commandos killed three local leaders of the Islamic State (IS) terror group near Baghdad, the military said.

Yahia Rasoul, spokesman of the commander-in-chief of the Iraqi forces, said in a statement on Thursday that the CTS forces attacked an IS hideout in the al-Radwaniyah area, southwest of Baghdad, reports Xinhua news agency.

Rasoul said that the victims had helped the suicide bombers, who carried out twin bombings on January 21 in a bustling outdoor market for second-hand clothes in the Bab al-Sharji area in downtown Baghdad.

A total of 32 people were killed and 116 others were wounded in the blasts.

The commandos also raided an IS hideout in south of Baghdad and arrested another local leader, Rasoul said, adding that based on information extracted from the detainee, the troops dseized a cache of weapons in the al-Yousifiyah area.

The security situation in Iraq has been improving since the security forces fully defeated IS militants across the country late in 2017.

However, deadly incidents still occur sporadically in the war-ravaged country as IS remnants have since retreated into urban areas or deserts and rugged areas, waging frequent guerilla attacks against security forces and civilians.