Three ISIS fighters were killed and five wounded after an explosive vest they were attaching to a donkey blew up prematurely.

The terrorists were trying out new tactics in the al-Rashad region of Iraq - about 25 miles southwest of Kirkuk - by turning the unlucky mammal into a weapon of war.

It is thought the donkey was going to be sent into the Hamreen mountains in the northeast of the country, where it would come into contact with security forces.

It is thought the donkey was going to be sent into the Hamreen mountains in the northeast of the country, where it would come into contact with security forces. Pictured: A file photograph of a donkey

A source told Alsumaria News that the new technique for delivering explosives was being deployed so that ISIS forces can hit government troops without fearing airstrikes from the US-led coalition that controls the skies, Iraqi News reported.

ISIS has ruled parts of southwest Kirkuk since 2014 and is thought to have executed hundreds of civilians and security personnel.

Thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes there.

ISIS fanatics are turning to donkeys as a weapon of war - but three died when explosives attached to one of the unlucky mammals detonated prematurely. Pictured: A file photograph of ISIS fighters marching

The Iraqi government has been repeatedly asked by leaders in the Kirkuk area to liberate the town of Hawija, an administrative centre in Kirkuk governorate.

The town has a population of around 100,000 people, most of whom are Sunni Arabs.

In June it was reported that a woman working for ISIS known as 'crocodile jaws' had had her teeth shattered in a revenge attack after she bit hundreds of women deemed to be violating modesty laws in the town.