Iraqi forces Wednesday wrested back control of key areas west of Baghdad that have been out of government hands for weeks amid a deadly standoff between militants and security forces.

The battles in Anbar province, a mostly Sunni desert region that shares a border with Syria, and a protracted surge in nationwide violence have left more than 850 people dead so far this month, fueling fears Iraq is slipping back into the all-out conflict that plagued it in 2006 and 2007 .

Washington has said it plans to sell Iraq 24 Apache attack helicopters in a $4.8 billion deal to help the country fight militants.

Officials said Iraqi forces also took back Al-Nasaf, on the western outskirts of Fallujah, Wednesday.

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