Accessibility links

Breaking News

Blasts Hit South Baghdad As ISIL Advances Toward Ramadi


Members of the Kurdish security forces inspect the site of a suicide bombing attack in Kirkuk on June 25.
Members of the Kurdish security forces inspect the site of a suicide bombing attack in Kirkuk on June 25.

Iraqi officials say a suicide bombing and shelling have killed 12 people and wounded at least 23 in southern Baghdad.

The attacks come as government forces on June 25 struggle against an advance by Sunni-led militants north and west of Baghdad.

Led by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), an Al-Qaeda offshoot, the militants have overrun large parts of five provinces.

RFE/RL's Radio Free Iraq reports militants in Anbar Province are positioned on the outskirts of Haditha and have advanced across a Euphrates River bridge to the village of Burwana on the main route to Ramadi.

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said he will visit Saudi Arabia on June 27 for talks with King Abdullah on the crisis in Iraq and Syria.

Kerry on June 25 warned countries against action that could heighten sectarian divisions after reports of Syrian air strikes against ISIL supply routes in Iraq.

Based on reporting by Reuters, AP, and RFE/RL's Radio Free Iraq

RFE/RL has been declared an "undesirable organization" by the Russian government.

If you are in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine and hold a Russian passport or are a stateless person residing permanently in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine, please note that you could face fines or imprisonment for sharing, liking, commenting on, or saving our content, or for contacting us.

To find out more, click here.

XS
SM
MD
LG