Security forces and armed tribesmen were engaged in fighting in Ramadi on Thursday afternoon
Special forces in Iraq are fighting jihadist militants who have reportedly taken over swathes of two cities.
The clashes with fighters from the al-Qaeda linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) are taking place in Fallujah and Ramadi.
Both cities are in the province of Anbar where Sunni militant activity has been on the rise.
On Monday the security forces broke up a long-running Sunni anti-government protest camp in Ramadi.
A senior police officer was quoted as saying ISIS fighters had seized at least 10 police stations and had freed a number of prisoners.
ISIS fighters have posted videos of themselves burning government vehicles, setting up checkpoints and issuing challenges to the authority of the Shia Prime Minister, Nouri Maliki.
Sunni tribal fighters have also taken to the streets, with reports that some are fighting on the government side.
Militants reportedly set up checkpoints outside the main government building in Fallujah
Attacks stepped up
As well as the breaking up of the protest camp, the arrest of a Sunni MP at the weekend raised tensions.
Sunni Arabs in Iraq claim they have been targeted and politically marginalised by Mr Maliki’s government, a charge the prime minister denies.
Ten people died when the government moved against the camp in Ramadi on Monday.
In April, a raid by security forces on a similar protest camp in the northern town of Hawija left 44 civilians and one policeman dead.
The move by the authorities came after Mr Maliki said the protest camp had “turned into a headquarters for the leadership of al-Qaeda”.
Extremist Sunni militants linked to al-Qaeda subsequently stepped up attacks across the country, while Shia groups began deadly reprisals.
The UN says 2013 was the deadliest year in Iraq since 2008, with at least 7,818 civilians and 1,050 members of the security forces killed in violent attacks.
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