Rebels in Iraq have gained more ground in Iraq overnight, moving into two strategically-important towns in the province of Diyala, northeast of Baghdad, after security forces abandoned their posts.

Armed men, who have not yet been identified, entered the towns of Jalulah and Saaiydiyah and used loudspeakers to tell local police that if they laid down their weapons and left their posts they would not be hurt, locals told Al Jazeera.

The security forces complied and left the towns, they said. Witnesses and an Al Jazeera journalist in Diyala said the men then promised locals they would be unhurt.

Later on Friday, a representative for Iraq's top Shia cleric called on Iraqis to defend their country, saying those who are able should join the security forces to battle the rebels.

Security sources told the Reuters news agency that several other villages in Diyala, around the Himreen mountains, which have long been a hideout for armed groups, had also fallen to rebels overnight.

The Iraqi army fired artillery at Saaiydiyah and Jalulah from the nearby town of Muqdadiya, sending dozens of families fleeing towards Khaniqin, near the Iranian border, security sources said.

The armed men said Muqdadiya was their next target, according to locals.
Fighters overran the northern city of Mosul earlier this week and have since pressed south towards Baghdad in an onslaughtagainst the Shia-led government.

PHOTO CAPTION

Refugees fleeing from Mosul head to the self-ruled northern Kurdish region in Irbil, Iraq, 350 kilometers (217 miles) north of Baghdad, Thursday, June 12, 2014.

Al-Jazeera