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The capture of Muhassan, about 100 kilometres from the Iraqi border, and two nearby villages, comes a week after the group swept across wide areas in northern and central Iraq, capturing that country’s second largest city of Mosul, and carving out a large region straddling the border.

“The capture of Muhassan is one of the biggest victories for the Islamic State in Deir el-Zour because it is home of the main centre of the military council in the province,” said Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

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The UN chief also urged the Iraqi government and its supporters not to retaliate against Sunni communities in revenge for “barbaric attacks” by the Al-Qaeda-inspired Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham.

The Iraqi government has sought U.S. airstrikes to stem the insurgency by Sunni extremists who are pressing toward Baghdad. President Barack Obama has held off for now, but the U.S. is collecting aerial intelligence over Iraq. If the U.S. were to proceed with airstrikes, officials did not rule out hitting targets in neighbouring Syria, where ISIS also has deep ties.

Ban warned that “military strikes against (ISIS) might have little lasting effect, or even be counter-productive, if there is no movement towards inclusive government in Iraq.”

The secretary-general addressed the Iraq crisis in a speech to the Asia Society on Syria, saying “suddenly, the cohesion and integrity of two major countries, not just one, is in question.”