Three policemen have been killed in the early hour of today in a suicide attack which took place in the south of Mosul, the northern Iraqi city where Islamic State is fighting off a U.S.-backed offensive.

 A group of about 10 assailants, including four suicide bombers, had tried to infiltrate a Federal Police helicopter base in Al-Areej.

Three policemen and three of the assailants were killed in the attack, Police gave chase but the assailants managed to escape.

It is the first major attack targeting government forces in this area since those forces took it back in February, four months after launching an offensive on Mosul.

Several camps for people displaced from Mosul are located in a nearby town, Hammam al-Alil, which is also a center of operations for international aid organizations.