Up to 500 ISIS fighters still active in Iraq: Military | AFP

The ISIS group still has up to 500 active fighters in Iraq, a senior military official estimated Sunday in the country where extremist cells continue to launch sporadic attacks.

But Iraqi General Qais al-Mohamadawi, part of the anti-extremist coalition, stressed that ISIS -- now based in remote desert and mountain hideouts -- has “lost its ability to attract new recruits”.

The United Nations estimated in a report published last month that ISIS still has “5,000 to 7,000 members and supporters” across Iraq and neighboring Syria, “roughly half of whom are fighters”.