US condemns 'horrifying' Iraq massacre

The United States condemned Sunday a "horrifying" massacre by militants said to have killed 1,700 Iraqi Shia air force recruits in the northern city of Tikrit, urging the country to unite against the threat.

"The claim by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) that it has massacred 1,700 Iraqi Shia air force recruits in Tikrit is horrifying and a true depiction of the bloodlust that these terrorists represent," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a statement.