Militants Kill Two at Local Iraq Government HQ

Islamic State group jihadists armed with assault rifles, pistols and suicide belts attacked a local government headquarters west of the Iraqi capital Tuesday, killing at least two people, officials said.

The attack comes a year to the day since IS launched a sweeping offensive that overran much of Iraq's Sunni Arab heartland, and Baghdad is still struggling to push the militants back.

Sabah Abdullah, a member of the Amriyat al-Fallujah local council, said two militants wearing police uniforms mounted the attack during a council meeting.

They were killed before they could detonate their explosives but were still able to open fire.

Police Major Arif al-Janabi said the militants killed one policeman and a civilian, while Abdullah put the death toll at two police and one civilian.

IS issued a statement claiming the attack, which it said was carried out by three militants.

IS has been driven out of some areas north and south of Baghdad but still holds much of western Iraq, including most of Anbar, where Amriyat al-Fallujah is located.

Baghdad's hopes of regaining ground in Anbar were dashed last month when IS overran provincial capital Ramadi, which Iraqi forces had defended for more than a year.