Militants battle Iraq forces, US-Iran talks broached

BAGHDAD: Militants and security forces battled for control of a strategic Shiite town in north Iraq Monday, sparking "chaos" and a mass exodus as Washington and Tehran mooted a landmark meeting over the crisis.

The assault on the town of Tal Afar, which lies along a critical corridor to war-torn Syria, was the latest in a week-long militant offensive that has spurred the American and Australian embassies to begin evacuating some staff.