Baghdad, Jan 30 (IANS): Six militants of the extremist Islamic State (IS) group were killed on Saturday, including an IS local leader, in an airstrike in Iraq's eastern province of Diyala, a security source has said.

Based on intelligence reports, the Iraqi warplanes carried out an airstrike on an IS position in the Udheim area in the northern part of Diyala province, Xinhua news agency quoted Colonel Ehab Mohammed from the Iraqi army as saying.

The airstrike killed six IS militants, including a local IS leader, Mohammed said.

The provinces, which the IS militants had previously controlled, have witnessed their intense activities during the past months, despite repeated military operations to hunt them down.

The security situation in Iraq has been improving since the Iraqi forces defeated the IS in 2017. However, IS remnants have since melted into urban centers, deserts, and rugged areas, carrying out frequent guerilla attacks against security forces and civilians.