BEIJING, June 12 (Xinhuanet) -- Militants belonging to the al-Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant have overrun the city of Tikrit in northern Iraq. Security sources said the militants drove more than 60 vehicles into Tikrit, the home town of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, occupying the provincial government headquarters and raising their black flag of Jihad. They also closed in on the country's biggest oil refinery in Baiji.
The latest incursions follow the seizure of Iraq’s second-largest city, Mosul, on Tuesday. About 500,000 Iraqis have fled Mosul and the surrounding province, many seeking safety in the autonomous Kurdistan region. Turkey's Foreign Ministry said the militants were holding around 80 Turkish citizens seized in two separate incidents in Mosul, including one at the Turkish consulate.
NATO ambassadors held an emergency meeting on Wednesday evening at Turkey’s request to discuss the situation in Iraq. A NATO official said Turkey briefed the other allies on the situation in Mosul and the hostage-taking of Turkish citizens.
(Source: CNTV.cn)
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