Five Iraqi soldiers killed in ISIS attack, sources say

Iraq's defence ministry issued a statement mourning the loss of a colonel and "a number of heroic fighters of the regiment as a result of their response to a terrorist attack."

Security forces repelled the attack but there were many casualties in the process, the statement added.

Iraq has seen relative security stability in recent years after the chaos of the 2003-US-led invasion and years of bloody sectarian conflict that followed.

Baghdad is now looking to draw down the US-led international coalition that helped defeat Islamic State and remain in the country in an advisory role, saying local security forces can handle the threat themselves.