An Australian working for a land mine clearance charity has been killed in northern Iraq while trying to defuse a bomb planted by Islamic State militants, colleagues say.

The man was killed yesterday while working for the non-profit Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD) in the Daquq area, around 200km north of Baghdad.

Islamic State were driven out of Daquq last year but left behind hundreds of improvised explosive devices.

FSD program manager Alex Van Roy said the unnamed Australian was killed instantly when the bomb containing up to 7 kilograms of explosives blew up.

He said the family of the victim had asked that his name be withheld.

FSD has removed some 500 home-made bombs in the Daquq area since it began working there around two months ago, Kurdish FSD team member Aso Sabah al-Din said.

The team of two dozen includes both expatriates and Kurdish forces who control the area.

They say they do not have the capabilities to deal with the bombs left by Islamic State.

With AAP