Iraqi military jets have dropped leaflets over the city of Fallujah urging remaining civilians there to leave within three days in anticipation of intense air strikes.
Iraqi security forces have been locked in clashes with Islamic militants in Fallujah for months. The militants control parts of the city as well as the whole of nearby Ramadi. Both cities are located in Anbar Province.
Meanwhile, an Iraqi minister has said militants have again closed all the gates of the Fallujah dam, a major water source on the Euphrates River.
The U.S. embassy in Baghdad issued a statement on April 14 condemning "ongoing terrorist acts" by the jihadist group the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), including the Euphrates River dam shutdown.
"Targeting dams and other vital infrastructure victimizes innocent Iraqi citizens. In the past week, hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqis have suffered from water shortages as a result of ISIL's actions," the embassy said.
Iraqi security forces have been locked in clashes with Islamic militants in Fallujah for months. The militants control parts of the city as well as the whole of nearby Ramadi. Both cities are located in Anbar Province.
Meanwhile, an Iraqi minister has said militants have again closed all the gates of the Fallujah dam, a major water source on the Euphrates River.
The U.S. embassy in Baghdad issued a statement on April 14 condemning "ongoing terrorist acts" by the jihadist group the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), including the Euphrates River dam shutdown.
"Targeting dams and other vital infrastructure victimizes innocent Iraqi citizens. In the past week, hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqis have suffered from water shortages as a result of ISIL's actions," the embassy said.