Local sources in Iraq say armed groups have taken control over Riyadh, Abbassi and Reshat regions in the town of al-Hawija near the oil-rich city of Kirkuk in northern Iraq, Al Jazeera TV reported.
These sources said soldiers of the 12th Division fled in groups. A number of Iraqi Army posts have been set ablaze and the Armed Tribes High Military Council issued a statement saying all posts of the 46th Brigade in al-Hawija have been seized by their forces.