Iraqi soldiers monitor a checkpoint east of Baghdad on January 6, 2014, the 93rd anniversay of the Iraqi Army, as Iraq is preparing a major attack to retake Fallujah, 74 kilometres west of the capital which has been outside government control for days, while parts of Anbar provincial capital Ramadi, farther west, are also held by Al-Qaeda-linked fighters. Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki called for Fallujah residents to expel “terrorists” holding the city to avoid an assault by security forces, as they battled gunmen in nearby Ramadi. AFP PHOTO / ALI AL-SAADI (Photo credit should read ALI AL-SAADI/AFP/Getty Images)
