Iraq Sunni Militant Group Vows to March on Baghdad [View all]

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Last edited Thu Jun 12, 2014, 05:11 AM - Edit history (1)

Source: Associated Press

@AP: BREAKING: Al-Qaida-inspired group says it will march on Baghdad after seizing 2 key Sunni cities in Iraq.

Jun 12, 5:07 AM EDT

IRAQ SUNNI MILITANT GROUP VOWS TO MARCH ON BAGHDAD

BY SAMEER N. YACOUB AND ADAM SCHRECK

ASSOCIATED PRESS


BAGHDAD (AP) -- The al-Qaida-inspired group that led the charge in capturing two key Sunni-dominated cities in Iraq this week vowed Thursday to march on to Baghdad, raising fears about the Shiite-led government's ability to slow the assault following the insurgents' lightning gains.

Fighters from the militant group known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant on Wednesday took Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, as soldiers and security forces abandoned their posts and yielded ground once controlled by U.S. forces.

That seizure followed the capture of much of Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city, the previous day. The group and its allies among local tribesmen also hold the city of Fallujah and other pockets of the Sunni-dominated Anbar province to the west of Baghdad.

A spokesman for the Islamic State said the group has old scores to settle with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government in Baghdad. The Iraqi leader, a Shiite, is trying to hold onto power after indecisive elections in April.

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