Iran will attack Islamic State deep into Iraqi territory if group nears border, says general

Iran will attack the Islamic State inside Iraq if they advance near the border, ground forces commander General Ahmad Reza Pourdestana said in comments published on Saturday.

"If the terrorist group come near our borders, we will attack deep into Iraqi territory and we will not allow it to approach our border," the official IRNA news agency quoted Pourdestana as saying.

IS control a swathe of territory north of Baghdad, including in Diyala province, which borders Shiite Iran.