Hundreds of Iraqi Sunni families were fleeing into Kurdish territory in the north of the country yesterday, fearful of advancing Shia militias bent on revenge.
The exodus, from a region controlled by Islamic State (Isis), was triggered by an Iraqi offensive to retake the city of Tikrit, the birthplace of Saddam Hussein.
The Sunni families made their way at the weekend through an improvised crossing at Maktab Khalid where Isis and Kurdish forces have reached a local agreement to allow civilians to cross the front lines.
The refugees spoke of mounting terror among Sunni Arab families in Tikrit that the city could fall to Shia militias who have vowed to exact retribution on Sunnis for the infamous massacre of more than a thousand mostly Shia