--- description: CNN has reported that the insurgents have pledged to further their assault on cities across the country. title: Insurgent Violence in Iraq Predicted to Worsen, Strike Baghdad image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt25cf9a0e9b4c92c3/6986973b35ba6fff08c028a0/rtr3t3ut.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Iraq](/tag/iraq/) ## Iraq Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The Iraqi Government Is Asking for U.S. Airstrikes ## Video: Iraq: Tikrit Falls to Islamist Militant Group [Watch (HLS stream): Iraq: Tikrit Falls to Islamist Militant Group](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/Ja43HCOR.m3u8) (2:03)  _Published 2014-06-12. Iraq: Tikrit Falls to Islamist Militant Group_ by [Nash Jenkins](/author/p-nash-jenkins/) ## Nash Jenkins Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 12, 2014 8:08 AM CUT  Children stand next to a burned-out vehicle during clashes between Iraqi forces and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul on June 10. Children stand next to a burned-out vehicle during clashes between Iraqi forces and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul on June 10.Reuters by [Nash Jenkins](/author/p-nash-jenkins/) ## Nash Jenkins Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 12, 2014 8:08 AM CUT With Islamist militants [marching toward Baghdad](http://time.com/2859454/iraq-tikrit-isis-baghdad-mosul/ "undefined"), the enfeebled Iraqi government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has [expressed a willingness](http://www.cnn.com/2014/06/12/world/meast/iraq-violence/index.html?hpt=hp%5Ft1 "undefined") to allow the U.S. to conduct airstrikes on the insurgents. The U.S. withdrew its last troops from Iraq in December 2011—a “new dawn” for the country, the Prime Minister [said at the time](http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/12/31/185602.html "undefined"). However, many believe the resulting power vacuum has permitted insurgent forces to gain traction in the country. Over the past week, the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) and other Islamic fundamentalist groups have seized the major cities of Mosul and Tikrit, and have displaced more than 500,000 Iraqis, [according to a report](https://www.iom.int/cms/en/sites/iom/home/news-and-views/press-briefing-notes/pbn-2014/pbn-listing/iom-tracks-iraqi-displacement-as.html "undefined") released on Wednesday by the International Organization for Migration. The country’s Foreign Minister, Hoshyar Zabari, [told CNN](http://www.cnn.com/2014/06/12/world/meast/iraq-violence/index.html?hpt=hp%5Ft1 "undefined") the situation was “mortal.” CNN, citing unnamed officials, said Washington was looking to see what further support it could provide Baghdad besides the the $15 billion worth of equipment and training it had already given. On Thursday, a 17-minute audio recording, purportedly of ISIS spokesman Abu Mohammed al-Adnani, emerged urging fighters to “continue \[their\] march as the battle is not yet raging.” “It will rage in Baghdad and Karbala. So be ready for it,” it says. Washington, however, seems to have little appetite to heed Iraq’s plea for more assistance. “Ultimately, this is for the Iraqi security forces, and the Iraqi government to deal with,” Rear Admiral John F. Kirby, the spokesperson for the Pentagon,[ told the New York _Times_](http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/12/world/middleeast/iraq-asked-us-for-airstrikes-on-militants-officials-say.html?hp "undefined") on Tuesday. Meanwhile, as the insurgents approach Baghdad — Tikrit, the hometown of former despot Saddam Hussein, is less than a hundred miles north of the capital — Washington [has warned](http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/english/alertswarnings/iraq-travel-warning.html "undefined") that Americans in the country “remain at high risk for kidnapping and terrorist violence.” [Speculation](http://hotair.com/archives/2014/06/11/as-militants-advance-in-iraq-u-s-embassy-in-baghdad-readies-evacuation/ "undefined") that the State Department is exercising evacuation procedures could not be independently verified. Speaking at around 6 a.m. local time, a spokesperson told TIME that he could neither confirm nor deny that the U.S. embassy would be evacuated. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2862759/iraq-insurgent-isis-baghdad-air-strikes/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2862759/iraq-insurgent-isis-baghdad-air-strikes/"},"headline":"The Iraqi Government Is Asking for U.S. Airstrikes","datePublished":"2014-06-12T08:08:45.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T08:22:12.756Z","description":"A desperate Baghdad is pleading for help as militant groups follow their an assault on major cities in northern Iraq by making their way towards the capital","url":"https://time.com/2862759/iraq-insurgent-isis-baghdad-air-strikes/","keywords":["Iraq","al-Qaeda","insurgency","ISIS","Baghdad","militants","Sunni"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt25cf9a0e9b4c92c3/6986973b35ba6fff08c028a0/rtr3t3ut.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Nash Jenkins","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/p-nash-jenkins/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt25cf9a0e9b4c92c3/6986973b35ba6fff08c028a0/rtr3t3ut.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Civilian children stand next to a burnt vehicle during clashes between Iraqi security forces and al Qaeda-linked Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in the northern Iraq city of Mosul","caption":"Civilian children stand next to a burnt vehicle during clashes between Iraqi security forces and al Qaeda-linked Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in the northern Iraq city of Mosul","creditText":"Reuters","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/iraq/","name":"Iraq"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2862759/iraq-insurgent-isis-baghdad-air-strikes/","name":"The Iraqi Government Is Asking for U.S. Airstrikes"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Iraq: Tikrit Falls to Islamist Militant Group","description":"Iraq: Tikrit Falls to Islamist Militant Group","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/Ja43HCOR/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2014-06-12T13:04:55.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/Ja43HCOR.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/2862759/iraq-insurgent-isis-baghdad-air-strikes/","duration":"PT2M3S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/2862759/iraq-insurgent-isis-baghdad-air-strikes/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```