Free Republic

<p>The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group executed 70 members of a Sunni tribe allied to the government in western Iraq earlier this week, a tribal leader and the United Nations said Wednesday.</p> <p>The victims, members of the Albu Nimr tribe, were executed on Sunday in the Tharthar area north of Ramadi, the capital of the western Anbar province, tribal elder Naim Gaoud told AFP.</p>

Anbar Province Could ‘Collapse Within Hours,’ Says Iraqi Tribal Leader ‘We’re Losing Ground, Not Gaining’ By Kellan Howell - February 14, 2015 An Iraqi tribal leader said Saturday that Islamic State militants are quickly gaining ground in Anabar province and predicted Iraqi army forced could “collapse within hours” if tribal forces withdraw. Sheikh Naim al-Gaoud, a Sunni Muslim leader of the Albu Nimr tribe, called for more U.S. intervention in the region, including ground troops and arming tribes directly, CNNreported Saturday.

The town of al Baghdadi in Iraq's Anbar province sits close to the Al Asad airbase where over 300 US Marines are stationed. The Islamic State has taken control of large portions of the town of al Baghdadi in Iraq's Anbar province. The town, which is 50 miles northwest of Ramadi, has been under siege for months after the Islamic State launched an offensive in Anbar last summer and took control of the nearby town of Hit. According to Reuters, a district manager said that "Ninety percent of al-Baghdadi district has fallen under the control of the insurgents." Reuters goes...