DHAKA: The US secretary of state John Kerry is in the northern Iraqi city of Irbil holding talks with Kurdish leaders as Sunni rebels continue their offensive.

Kerry’s central aim is to assist the formation of a new, more inclusive Iraqi unity government, reports the BBC.

Kerry said Iraq faced a moment of great urgency as its very existence was under threat.

The Sunni rebels say they have fully captured the country’s main oil refinery at Baiji, north of Baghdad.

Meanwhile, a United Nations human rights team in Iraq has reported that at least 1,075 people have been killed in Iraq in June, most of them civilians.

The UN said the figures, which include a number of verified summary executions, should be viewed as an absolute minimum.

BDST: 1946 HRS, JUNE 24, 2014