This is an entry from: Live Blog: The struggle for Iraq
Welcome to Live Blog: Recap
14 June 2014 10:28 BST
Events have unfolded quickly in Iraq since the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) launched an offensive in Mosul on Monday night.
Here is a quick recap of what has happened over the past week:
- ISIL have taken control of Mosul, Tikrit and Samarra
- The Kurdish Peshmerga are in control of Kirkuk
- On Tuesday, Prime MInister Nuri al-Maliki called for a state of emergency to be declared, but the country's parliament failed to reach a quorum on Thursday to allow it to vote
- More than 500,000 refugees ahave reportedly fled northern Iraq
- The UN Security Council is convening a meeting to discuss the crisis
- US officials have been reportedly mulling over the idea of launching drone strikes on the militants
- On Friday, Ayatollah Sistani and other Shiite clerics implored civilians to take up arms against Sunni militants