Iraq

Stories 1301 - 1320 | << Prev   Next >>

Iraq Casualties Spike After Massive Bombings

Killings up sharply since January, but still down from previous year

(Newser) - Iraq’s civilian casualties rose 36% in February, with 633 suffering violent deaths and another 701 wounded, the Iraqi government reported today. That's up from 466 dead in January. The spike reflects three extraordinarily bloody bombings, including pet market bombings in early February that killed 99, and a suicide bombing...

What Obama Promises, McCain Delivers
What Obama Promises, McCain Delivers
OPINION
Feb 29, 2008 6:48 PM CST

What Obama Promises, McCain Delivers

Voters must guard against letting stars in their eyes blind them

(Newser) - The international press corps is so seduced by Barack Obama and so disgusted by John McCain that neither man can live up to his reputation, London Times US editor Gerard Baker writes. The “grown men wandering the corridors of London, Brussels and Berlin, crooning” about Obama are the same...

Turkey Pulls Out of N. Iraq
Turkey Pulls Out of N. Iraq
Feb 29, 2008 8:57 AM CST

Turkey Pulls Out of N. Iraq

Says it made its point to the PKK

(Newser) - Turkey pulled its troops out of northern Iraq today, ending a controversial offensive that had Washington and Baghdad on edge, Reuters reports. In a statement, Turkey said it had made its point. “There was no question of completely liquidating” the PKK, the military said, “but Turkey has shown...

Sunni Fighters Growing Tired of US Neglect

Disputed killings, lack of support weakens plan to reduce violence

(Newser) - The mostly Sunni volunteer forces that have drastically improved Iraq’s security are losing patience with US handlers, the Washington Post reports. Desertions are under way in key provinces over lack of resources, political disagreements, and disputed accounts of US troops killing members of the so-called Sunni Awakening. “Now,...

Bush Urges Congress to Pass Surveillance Bill
Bush Urges Congress
to Pass Surveillance Bill
UPDATED
Feb 28, 2008 9:29 AM CST

Bush Urges Congress to Pass Surveillance Bill

Threat growing as House holds up bill over immunity for telecoms, prez charges

(Newser) - President Bush urged Congress this morning to pass an update to the terrorist surveillance bill that expired more than a week ago, CNN reports. Bush said the delay poses "a risk of opening a gap in our intelligence gathering." The bill stalled in the House over a provision...

Turkey Gives No Timetable on Iraq Withdrawal

US, Iraq want quick end to incursion aimed at Kurd rebels

(Newser) - Despite mounting casualties and outside pressure, Turkey said today it would not give a timetable on pulling back troops from an offensive against Kurdish rebels in Iraq, Reuters reports. Turkish soldiers have killed 230 PKK guerillas since the conflict began, and lost 24 of their own. Iraqi and US officials...

British Hostage Appears on Arab Television

One of 5 missing since May asks for prisoner exchange

(Newser) - One of the five British men kidnapped in Baghdad eight months ago appeared on Arab television last night, begging Prime Minister Gordon Brown to free nine Iraqi prisoners in exchange for the Britons. “Release their people so that we can go home. It’s as simple as that,"...

Army to Shorten Combat Tours
Army to Shorten Combat Tours
Feb 27, 2008 7:40 AM CST

Army to Shorten Combat Tours

Three years between deployments

(Newser) - The Pentagon aims to trim tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan from 15 months to a year with an eventual three years between deployments, the Army's top general told the Senate Committee on Armed Services yesterday. The change will be made after the military reduces troop levels this summer,...

Poll: McCain Would Beat Either Dem
Poll: McCain Would Beat Either Dem
Feb 27, 2008 5:11 AM CST

Poll: McCain Would Beat Either Dem

Voters put GOP frontrunner way ahead on experience, war

(Newser) - Likely GOP nominee John McCain would give either Democratic rival a tough fight, according to the latest Bloomberg/Los Angeles Times poll . The poll puts McCain ahead of Hillary Clinton 46% to 40%, and leading Barack Obama 44% to 42%. Voters give the Vietnam vet far higher marks in experience and...

US Didn't Protest Turkish Incursion Into Iraq

White House told far in advance of ground assault

(Newser) - As fierce fighting continues in northern Iraq, American officials have confirmed they were aware that Turkey planned to strike at Kurdish guerrillas inside the border—and didn't raise objections, the Wall Street Journal reports. The US did, however, urge Turkey to limit the length and scope of the incursion. "...

8,000 Surge Troops to Stay Put
8,000 Surge Troops to Stay Put
Feb 26, 2008 6:38 AM CST

8,000 Surge Troops to Stay Put

More than a quarter of surge troops ordered to stick it out

(Newser) - More than a quarter of the extra troops sent to Iraq during the surge will stay in the war zone and not return to the US this summer as previously planned, the Pentagon has revealed. Some 8,000 of the 30,000 surge troops—including helicopter crews, supply units, headquarters...

Iraq Will Make or Break My Campaign: McCain

Says he'll lose if surge fails—then back pedals

(Newser) - John McCain flatly told reporters yesterday that if US policy in Iraq doesn't work, "I'll lose."  But then he quickly asked to "retract" his "stark" pronouncement, adding that he hoped voters would also back him for his ability to run the economy as well as...

Marines Demand Probe Into Armor Delay

Blast resistant vehicles 'could have cut deaths in half'

(Newser) - The US Marine Corps has asked the Department of Defense to investigate delays obtaining vehicles with blast-resistant armor for combat units in Iraq. An internal USMC memo claims the money needed for the vehicles, which could have cut deaths from roadside bombings by 50%, was diverted to other projects, reports...

Attacks on Shiite Pilgrims Jeopardize Sadr Ceasefire

Bombings continue with wheelchair attack

(Newser) - A wave of violence against Shiite pilgrims continued today, with at least seven dying in a pair of roadside bombings, and nerves fraying over an unpopular ceasefire. Shiites are observing one of their most sacred holidays despite a spate of attacks—today's plus at least three yesterday—that are straining...

Woodruff Fights for Words
Woodruff Fights for Words
Feb 25, 2008 10:40 AM CST

Woodruff Fights for Words

Wounded ABC newsman describes continuing struggle

(Newser) - When ABC's Bob Woodruff reported recently from North Korea, he appeared fully recovered from horrific head injuries he suffered in Iraq. In fact, he has a lingering disorder that could have ended his career as a journalist. He discusses working with expressive aphasia, a struggle to remember words, with Christine...

40 Iraq Shiite Pilgrims Killed in Blast

Tent explodes as pilgrims take a break during a days-long trek

(Newser) - At least 40 people were killed today when a suicide bomber detonated an explosive vest amid a crowd of Shiite pilgrims during a trek south of Baghdad. A tent where the marchers stopped for food exploded in Iskandariyah in the second attack on Arbaeen, a day when millions descend on...

Turkey Bombs Rebels in Iraqi Mountains

Attacks must end 'as soon as possible,' Baghdad warns

(Newser) - Fighting continued in semiautonomous Kurdistan today as Turkey’s air and artillery forces let loose a hail of bombs in the mountains of northern Iraq, the AP reports. The strikes are ratcheting up tension between Turkey and the US-backed Iraqi government: Iraq’s foreign minister today told Turkey to get...

Basra Awash in Violence as It Tests Self-Rule

Militia violence doesn't bode well for rest of the nation

(Newser) - Basra is supposed to be a shining example of Iraqi self-rule, but the city remains riven by violence five months after British forces pulled out and left local leaders in control, the New York Times reports. Dozens of Shia militias are competing for power, and murders and kidnappings of prominent...

Militias Shell Green Zone in Baghdad

Assault on US-protected compound could hurt al-Sadr's credibility

(Newser) - A volley of rockets or mortar rounds hit Iraq’s Green Zone today, causing no injuries except perhaps to the credibility of a Shiite militia cease-fire extended just one day ago. The AP reports that nearly 10 explosions were heard inside the zone, which houses the American embassy, Iraqi government...

Surge: Success or Standstill?
Surge: Success or Standstill?
OPINION
Feb 22, 2008 4:11 PM CST

Surge: Success or Standstill?

Post columnists stake out opposing stances

(Newser) - The year-old troop surge in Iraq has Washington Post op-ed columnists at odds, with Charles Krauthammer saying it’s unreasonable to call it a failure and Michael Kinsley arguing it can’t be deemed a success. The former points to changed hearts and minds, anecdotes of emotional reconciliation, legislation that...

Stories 1301 - 1320 | << Prev   Next >>