BREAKING NEWS

Tough fight for Mosul after Kirkuk attack

At least 100 fighters sneaked into Kirkuk in the early hours of Friday with machine guns, rocket propelled grenades, suicide vests and a message: "Islamic State has taken over."

The message blared out from several mosque loudspeakers while the militants went on a rampage.

By the time they had blasted their way across the city in a brazen and complex attack, 99 civilians and members of the security forces were dead and 63 of their own were in the morgue, according to Iraqi security officials.