Iraqi Shiite fighters raise up their weapons as they show their willingness to join Iraqi security forces in the fight against Jihadist militants on June 23, 2014 during a gathering in the southern city of Basra. (credit: HAIDAR MOHAMMED ALI/AFP/Getty Images)
ERBIL, Iraq (CBS News/CBSDC/AP) — The Sunni militant group in Iraq is a force roughly 3,000 strong and includes some Americans, a senior intelligence official told CBS News on Tuesday.
The majority of fighters in the group, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, are of Iraqi and Syrian origin.
In all, up to 10,000 are fighting with the group, 3,000 in Iraq and another 7,000 in Syria, the intelligence official said. Between 3,000 and 5,000 are foreigners, though how many of those are in Iraq is difficult to assess.
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