Pentagon Press Secretary Rear Adm. John Kirby speaks to reporters on April 29, 2014 (AFP Photo/Paul J. Richards )

(VOVworld) - The Pentagon said Friday that Iran has sent "small numbers" of operatives into Iraq to help Baghdad fend off the onslaught by Sunni militants from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
Pentagon’s spokesman Admiral John Kirby told a news conference on Friday that there are some Iranian revolutionary operatives in Iraq but there is no indication of ground forces or major units.
The comments referred to Tehran's Quds force, the covert arm of the Revolutionary Guard Corps.
But the Pentagon offered no further details on the nature of the Iranians' presence or their operations, amid media reports that Tehran had launched a concerted effort to shore up Iraqi forces.

The same day, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned that air strike accusations at Sunni Islamic insurgents in Iraq are unlikely to take effect if a multi-religion solidarity government will not be established. In his speech at Asia Society, Ban Ki-moon condemned religious conflicts and violent acts and called for factions in Iraq to be united to fight against terrorist forces.