Reports from Baghdad indicate that the Iraqi army has halted the advances of the ISIS militants, at least for the time being.
Iraqi ground forces, backed by airstrikes, have halted advancing Islamic State militants in a town west of Baghdad. While the potentially devastating drive toward the Iraqi capital by Islamic State militants has been stopped, the situation is still tense as the invading militants are merely 40 km outside of Baghdad.
A local report by Rudaw stated that the ISIS is now holding ground at Ameriyat al-Fallujah, a strategic town west of Baghdad and south of ISIS-controlled Fallujah. Both these towns are less than an hour's drive from Baghdad.
The situation inside Baghdad is that of panic and fear as the local population fears an immediate overtaking of the city of by the ISIS fighters.
BBC's Lyse Doucet in the Iraqi capital stated that following the airstrikes, the areas around Amariya al-Falluja are now said to be calm, but there is a standoff along the main road to Falluja to the north, which is controlled by ISIS.
Canon Andrew White, the Vicar of Baghdad in a Facebook post stated that the people are living in fear as it looks as if 'the nation has collapsed.'
"The usual hectic and crazy streets were this morning almost empty. [As] ISIS or Daash as they are known locally are very close to Baghdad," White said.
The latest news this morning suggested that the further access of ISIS towards Baghdad appears to have halted, White added.
"How far they are from here varies according to who is providing the information but they appear to be 5-15 miles (8-24 km) away and in the last 12 hours have not got closer. So we live in hope," he concluded in his posted.
