BAGHDAD, September 22 (RIA Novosti) – The Iraqi army have used the Russian anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) system Kornet for the first time, destroying five Islamic State (IS) armored vehicles in the central province of Diyala, Alsumaria TV channel reported on Monday.

“The Russian anti-tank system was first used by the Iraqi army … in the province of Diyala [50 kilometers east of the city of Baqubah], where five armored vehicles with gunmen were destroyed," an unnamed representative of the Iraqi security forces told the channel.

According to him, three squadrons of the Iraqi army have been trained to use the Russian anti-tank system.

"The Russian Kornet weapon has demonstrated very high precision in destroying targets," the Iraqi military man said.

According to the channel, the Russian ATGM system, Kornet was ordered by the Iraqi government to improve the efficiency of the army in the fight against extremist armed groups.

The IS, also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) or Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), has been fighting the Syrian government since 2012. In June 2014, it launched an offensive in Iraq seizing territories in both countries, proclaiming an Islamic caliphate over its conquered land. The jihadist group has killed thousands of Shiites, Christians, and Yazidis, and forced thousands of people to flee territories under their control.