Iran sends forces to Iraq as ISIS militants press forward, official says

(CNN) -- Emboldened militants, backed by Sunni
tribal leaders, pushed toward Baghdad on Friday
as Iran sent troops to fight alongside government
forces. In Washington, increasingly nervous U.S.
officials mulled their limited options to help slow
the militants' advance.
In recent days, Iran has sent about 500
Revolutionary Guard troops to fight alongside
Iraqi government security forces in Diyala
province, a senior security official in Baghdad told
CNN.
Meanwhile, Sunni tribal leaders have lined up
behind radical Islamists from the Islamic State in
Iraq and Syria, or ISIS , making their push toward
Baghdad easier, a Saudi intelligence official told
CNN's Nic Robertson.
As Iraq further disintegrated, residents
fled Mosul in droves. Militants
captured the country's second-largest
city this week after soldiers scattered,
leaving their uniforms and weapons
behind.
The spreading violence prompted U.S.
President Barack Obama to say the
beleaguered government required
assistance, but he warned Friday that
it would take "several days" for the
U.S. to react.
"This is not going to happen
overnight," he told reporters.
And, he said, the United States will
need assurances from Iraq's
government that it will work to find a
political solution the crisis.
A senior Obama administration official
said Friday that the President has not
yet made a decision on whether to act
on any military options. But another
senior administration official indicated
that a decision could come as early as
this weekend.
Airstrikes are among the options on
the table, White House spokesman Jay
Carney said Thursday. But there will be no repeat
of a large U.S. troop presence on Iraqi soil.
"We are not contemplating ground troops," Carney
said. "I want to be clear about that."
U.S. officials have also discussed bolstering
ongoing efforts to send arms, equipment and
intelligence information to help Iraq and its
military.
Kerry: Wake-up call
Secretary of State John Kerry said Friday that the
ISIS militants are a threat not just to Iraq, but to
the United States and the rest of the world -- and
that is why Obama is urgently considering his
next steps.
"Every country that understands the importance of
stability in the Middle East needs to be concerned
about what is happening," Kerry said, speaking at
a summit in London.
"That is why I am confident the United States will
move rapidly and confidently in order to join with
its allies in dealing with this challenge."
Kerry said the latest events had been a "wake-up
call" for Iraq's divided political leadership, which
has been accused of failing to address growing
sectarian divisions.
The United States has a "very direct relationship"
with Iraq, he said. "I don't think anybody in the
region or in this administration believes it is in
the interests of the United States to turn our
backs on that."
The militants from ISIS want to establish a
caliphate, or Islamic state, in the region --
stretching from Iraq into northern Syria, where it
has had significant success battling the forces of
President Bashar al-Assad.
Their lightning advance in Iraq has been aided by
support from many Sunnis who feel that the
Shia-dominated government has marginalized
them.