Iraq receives first Russian fighter jets

The Iraqi government has received a delivery of Russian-made fighter planes it hopes will turn the tide against Sunni rebels who have seized large parts of the country.

Iraqi security officials confirmed five Sukhoi jets, which were purchased second-hand from Russia, had arrived in Baghdad on Saturday.

Pictures released by the defence ministry show the jets taxiing on a runway towards a hangar.

The planes are expected to bolster efforts by the Iraqi armed forces to retake territory seized by Sunni rebels led by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant earlier in June.

The Iraqi government launched its biggest push yet to drive back the rebel offensive on Saturday, as soldiers backed by tanks and helicopter gunships began an offensive to retake the northern city of Tikrit.

There were conflicting reports as to just how much headway the Iraqi military made in its initial thrust towards Tikrit, the hometown of Saddam Hussein, according to the AP news agency.

Residents said Sunni fighters were still in control of the city during the night, but Iraqi officials said the troops had reached the outskirts and even entered Tikrit itself.

What was clear, however, was the government's desire to portray the campaign as a significant step forward after two weeks of demoralising defeats at the hands of the ISIL fighters and their allies.

The rebel surge in northern and western Iraq has thrown the country into its deepest crisis since US troops withdrew in December 2011, and threatens to divide the country in three along sectarian and ethnic lines.

Iraq's large, US-trained and equipped military melted away in the face of the rebel onslaught, sapping morale and public confidence in its ability to stem the tide.

The Tikrit operation, if successful, could help restore a degree of faith in the security forces, as well as embattled Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.