The Iraqi army is likely to lose ground in Anbar province and 'collapse within hours' as the Islamic State (IS) militants try to fight their way in, said an Iraqi tribal leader.
According to CNN, Sheikh Naim al-Gaoud, a Sunni Muslim leader of the Albu Nimr tribe, called for more US intervention-including ground troops, arming tribes directly or at least pressuring the Iraqi government to give the tribes more firepower.
He said that the thousands of families were trapped in the town of Jubbat al-Shamiya until they received help Friday from US-led coalition airstrikes and Iraqi forces.
Al-Goud said that the Iraqi army had retreated from Jubbat al-Shamiya on Saturday amid shelling by IS.
He further said that a massacre was inevitable if the Islamist extremist group's fighters managed to enter Jubbat al-Shamiya.
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