How strong is Iraq's army? In 45 seconds
Sunni militants have seized the northern Iraqi city of Tal Afar, officials and residents say.
Militants led by ISIS - the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant - captured key cities including Mosul and Tikrit last week, but some towns were retaken.
UN Humanitarian Chief Valerie Amos said there were reports of "major human rights violations", including summary executions of civilians.
The US says it may use drone strikes to halt the militants' advance.
"They're not the whole answer, but they may well be one of the options that are important," said US Secretary of State John Kerry.
"When you have people murdering, you have to stop that. And you do what you need to do if you need to try to stop it from the air or otherwise."
Mr Kerry added that his country was also open to holding direct talks with Iran over Iraq.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani earlier said he would consider co-operation if the US took action.
The USS George HW Bush aircraft carrier is already being deployed to the Gulf, accompanied by two more warships. But Washington says no US troops will be deployed on the ground.
Mixed city
Fighting in Tal Afar began on Sunday, with mortar shelling of some districts as militants tried to enter the city.
Tal Afar, which has a mixed Sunni and Shia population, some ethnic Turkmen, lies between Mosul and the border with Syria.
A resident reached by phone has told the Associated Press news agency that militants in pick-up trucks mounted with machine guns and flying black jihadi banners were roaming the streets as gunfire rang out.
"Residents are gripped by fear and most of them have already left the town to areas held by Kurdish security forces," said Hadeer al-Abadi, as he prepared to head out of town with his family.
But the Iraqi government insists the town is still largely in government hands; it quoted the commanding general there as saying he expected to finish off the ISIS fighters within a matter of hours, says the BBC's Jim Muir in northern Iraq.
The government also says it has "regained the initiative" against an offensive by Sunni rebels.
Security has been increased in Baghdad after ISIS threatened to march on the capital
Hundreds of volunteers have signed up for military service after authorities urged them to help fight ISIS
Tribal fighters, like these in Diyala province, have also joined Iraqi forces in the battle against the militants
Fighters said to be from ISIS are seen in Salahuddin province where they allegedly massacred Iraqi soldiers
- The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) has 3,000 to 5,000 fighters, and grew out of an al-Qaeda-linked organisation in Iraq
- Joined in its offensives by other Sunni militant groups, including Saddam-era officers and soldiers, and disaffected Sunni tribal fighters
- ISIS has exploited the standoff between the Iraqi government and the minority Sunni Arab community, which complains that Shia Prime Minister Nouri Maliki is monopolising power
- The organisation is led by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, an obscure figure regarded as a battlefield commander and tactician
Earlier, Iraqi army spokesman Lt Gen Qasim Ata said the military had scored successes against the militants in several areas, killing 279 of them. The figure could not be independently verified.
Government forces were also reported to be building up in the city of Samarra, north of Baghdad, ready for a counter-offensive on Tikrit.
The pictures have not been independently verified, but military sources said they were authentic
'Horrifying'
Meanwhile, Baroness Amos said the UN was looking into the authenticity of photos posted online by Sunni militants that appear to show fighters massacring Iraqi soldiers.
"Because of the ongoing fighting it has made it difficult for us to get around and know exactly what is going on," she said at a press briefing in Geneva.
In the scenes, the soldiers are shown being led away and lying in trenches before and after their "execution" in Salahuddin province.
The images appear to show captured Iraqi soldiers in civilian clothes being led away by militants, as the BBC's John Simpson reports
The Iraqi military said the pictures were real, but their authenticity has not been independently confirmed.
The US condemned the images as "horrifying".
If the photographs are genuine, this would be by far the biggest single atrocity since the time of the American-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.
The United States has begun evacuating some diplomatic staff from Baghdad, moving them to Kurdish-controlled territory in the north-east and to Basra in the south.
The US has also announced it is increasing security at its embassy in Baghdad and relocating some staff to safer areas.
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