These are the men answering the call to arms in Baghdad, signing up to join the Iraqi army, and push the extremists back.
Most belong to the Shiite community, and will be sent to join Iraqi forces fighting against the Sunni militants of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
Hundreds in Baghdad, thousands more coming from the South prepared to defend the capital. They will face a serious challenge. Their opponent is battle hardened. Some Iraqi forces, however, are putting up serious resistance.
Kurdish forces, the Pershmarga, fighting outside Kirkuk on Sunday. They have been the one obstacle so far, in the rapid onslaught of Sunni fighters from Mosul down towards the very edge of Baghdad. But even the Kurds have found, once established, it has been hard to dislodge the militants.
The pace at which the Sunni militants were moving towards Baghdad has slowed tonight and the Iraqi army does appear to be holding the line at Samarra about one hundred kilometers to the north of the capital. But the militants are still making gains. Last night, after a bitter battle, they took Tal Afar, about 150 kilometers from here, and skirmishes continue with Kurdish forces outside Kirkuk. They have made huge gains in the past week, pushing them out will take much longer. CCTV’s Tony Cheng reports from northern Iraq.
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