Iraqi security officials blamed militants from the "Islamic State" (IS) for an attack on a village in eastern Iraq on Tuesday that killed at least 11 people and wounded six more.

The attack took place in the village of al-Rashad, close to the town of Barqouba in Diyala province.

IS members allegedly kidnapped two locals and then later opened fire on other villagers after they refused to pay a ransom, The Associated Press reported, citing local sources.

Many Iraqi security forces live in the area, and many of the victims were from the same Bani Tamim tribe as the Diyala province governor, AFP news agency said.

Islamist threat remains

IS violence towards civilians became rare after 2017 when the extremist group lost the vast swathes of territory it rapidly took control of in 2014.

Nevertheless, sleeper cells remain and authorities still have to contend with attacks against security forces, power stations and other infrastructure.

A UN report published earlier in the year said that around 10,000 IS fighters were still active across Iraq and Syria.

In July, the Sunni extremist group set off a roadside bomb in a Baghdad suburb that killed at least 30 people. They also claimed responsibility for a twin suicide attack on a busy market in the largely Shiite neighborhood of the capital that left at least 36 dead.

ab/wmr (AP, AFP)