2013年9月12日星期四

Yahoo! News: Iraq

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Yahoo! News: Iraq


Dictators never looked so good

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 04:54 PM PDT

Russian President Putin speaks to the media during a news conference at the G20 summit in St.PetersburgBy David Rohde Dictators have never looked so good. Vladimir Putin is saving the United States from another Mideast military intervention. Bashar al-Assad promises to "thin the herd" of jihadists and hold Syria together. And Egypt's new strongman, General Abdal Fattah el Sisi, says he is sorting out the Muslim Brotherhood. With each passing month in the Middle East, it seems, authoritarianism grows more attractive. Leaders described as "repressive" sound eminently reasonable. They promise to bring order to chaos. Putin's op-ed article in the New York Times on Wednesday is the latest example. ...


Kerry talks tough in Syria encounter with Russia

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 04:37 PM PDT

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry speaks next to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, right, during a press conference before their meeting to discuss the ongoing crisis in Syria, in Geneva, Switzerland, Thursday Sept. 12, 2013. Secretary of State John Kerry and his team have opened two days of meetings with their Russian counterparts in Geneva. Kerry is hoping to come away with the outlines of a plan for securing and destroying vast stockpiles of Syrian chemical weapons. (AP Photo/Keystone, Martial Trezzini)GENEVA (AP) — Striking a tough tone, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry opened swiftly convened talks with Russia on Syria's chemical weapons Thursday by bluntly rejecting a Syrian pledge to begin a "standard process" by turning over information rather than weapons — and nothing immediately.


Assad: Syria to offer data on chemical weapons

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 04:12 PM PDT

In this Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2013 photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, a Syrian government solider aims his weapon during clashes with Free Syrian Army fighters, not pictured, in Maaloula village, northeast of the capital Damascus, Syria. Heavy fighting between Syrian government troops and rebels flared again on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2013 in the ancient, predominantly Christian village of Maaloula. Troops are trying to flush out rebel units, including two that are linked to al-Qaida, from the hilltop enclave which they broke into last week. (AP Photo/SANA)BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad publicly agreed Thursday to a Russian plan to secure and destroy his chemical weapons, but said the proposal would work only if the U.S. halts threats of military action.


Taking Lead in Syria Talks, Russia Works to Preserve Assad Regime

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 03:15 PM PDT

On Thursday, Sept. 12, when Russian and American diplomats came to the negotiating table in Geneva, the Russian side came in with the upper hand. The previous night, they had sent Washington a proposal for dismantling Syria's stockpiles of chemical weapons. According to the Russian diplomat Alexei Pushkov, who discussed the outlines of the proposal with TIME, it includes several complicated phases and gives Syria a leading role in the destruction of its own chemical arsenal. The American side, meanwhile, has one trump card in these negotiations — the threat of a military strike against Syria. ...

Wounded vets meet Boston Marathon bombing victims

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 03:01 PM PDT

FILE-- This July 3, 2013 file photograph shows Boston Marathon bombing survivor Mery Daniel smiling during a break in her physical therapy session at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, in Boston. Some Boston Marathon bombing amputees, including Daniel, will be meeting with wounded military veterans as part of a nonprofit's efforts to raise money for both groups. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)BOSTON (AP) — Wounded veterans from across the U.S. and survivors who lost limbs in the Boston Marathon bombing drew inspiration from one another Thursday as they swapped stories and worked to raise public awareness of the challenges they face.


U.N. report may hint at source of Syria chemical weapons attack

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 02:33 PM PDT

A U.N. chemical weapons expert holds a plastic bag containing samples from one of the sites of an alleged chemical weapons attack in Ain TarmaBy Louis Charbonneau and Anthony Deutsch UNITED NATIONS/AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - U.N. chemical weapons investigators will not explicitly blame anyone in their forthcoming report on the August 21 poison gas attack in Syria, but diplomats say their factual reporting alone could suggest which side in the civil war was responsible. The United States and other Western powers blame forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for the attack. Russian President Vladimir Putin asserts there is "every reason to believe" it was carried out by rebels. France's U.N. ...


PUTIN PULLS OBAMA'S FEET FROM THE FIRE

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 02:31 PM PDT

WASHINGTON -- If there is one predominant conclusion shared by a number of the nation's best thinkers on foreign affairs this week, it is that the Russians did Barack Obama a great favor by getting him out of his plan to attack Syria in order to do ... well, something!The plan, which purportedly came from Russian President Vladimir Putin through his foreign minister, is already taking form in meetings in Geneva with Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart. ...

Obama allies cite PR missteps in bid for Syria hit

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 01:38 PM PDT

In this Sept. 10, 2013, photo, President Barack Obama addresses the nation in a live televised speech from the East Room of the White House in Washington. Some of Obama's top allies say the president misread a few crucial political forces when he asked Congress to support his bid to strike Syria over last month's chemical weapons attack. They say the chief one is the nation's profound weariness with military entanglements in the Middle East. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, Pool)WASHINGTON (AP) — Some of President Barack Obama's top allies say the president misread a few crucial political forces when he asked Congress to support his bid to strike Syria.


Holding Assad acountable

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 01:14 PM PDT

Louis Fisher, scholar in residence at the Constitution Project, discusses an important letter detailing the potential costs of a Syrian intervention by President Obama, as well as roadblocks placed by the President in his own path.

WikiLeaks server, a 'relic of our time', sells for $33,000

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 12:31 PM PDT

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - The server used by pro-transparency organization WikiLeaks when it released secret documents in 2010 about the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and a massive trove of diplomatic cables was sold for $33,000 on Thursday. Swedish Internet firm Bahnhof, which hosted WikiLeaks at the time, sold the Dell server on online marketplace eBay. http://r.reuters.com/zyv92v Bahnhof Chief Executive Jon Karlung called the server "a relic of our time" and said the buyer was a non-Swedish national. The data it contained had been erased, Karlung said. ...

Tough traffic ban frustrates Baghdadis

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 12:26 PM PDT

An Iraqi policeman watches the traffic on July 25, 2011 along the main thoroughfare of Saadun Street in central BaghdadMoves to bar half of Baghdad's cars from the roads have left residents frustrated, with many doubtful that the rules will achieve the aim of curbing car bombs.


Boeing delivers last C-17 to US Air Force

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 11:33 AM PDT

Boeing has delivered the final C-17 produced for the U.S. Air Force, more than two decades after the mammoth and versatile transport plane was rolled out as the Cold War wound down. Military officials ...

Arms dealer: Military hardware meant for hunting

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 10:45 AM PDT

A Belarus man admits he bought $700,000 worth of rifle scopes, night-vision goggles and other military hardware from U.S. exporters, but his lawyer said he sold them to hunters, not terrorists. The sentencing ...

Iran's new president seeks to begin outreach at UN

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 10:13 AM PDT

In this picture taken on May 2, 2013, Iranian President Hasan Rouhani delivers a sppech during his campaign for the presidential election in Tehran, Iran. The U.N. has slotted the new moderate-leaning president to address the global gathering of leaders on Sept. 24 - just hours after U.S. President Barack Obama is scheduled to wrap up his speech. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — For 15 years, Iranian presidents have been drawn to the U.N.'s global stage to mold their image and press their message.


Can Obama Recover?

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 09:48 AM PDT

Never has Winston Churchill's epigram looked so apt as right now: "Americans can always be counted on to do the right thing," the eloquent Briton reportedly said, "after they've exhausted all the other possibilities." Barack Obama at first tried just about every possibility in dealing with Syria but the right one. For many months, he ignored the spreading civil war there, even as it spilled over the borders into Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey. ...

Kerry testing Russia on Syria weapons

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 09:46 AM PDT

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, centre, on arrival at Cointrin Airport, in Geneva, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2013, prior to his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to discuss the ongoing problems in Syria. (AP Photo/Larry Downing, Pool)GENEVA (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and his team opened two days of meetings with their Russian counterparts on Thursday, hoping to emerge with the outlines of a plan for the complex task of safely securing and destroying vast stockpiles of Syrian chemical weapons in the midst of a brutal and unpredictable conflict.


Kerry set to test Russia on Syria weapons

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 08:45 AM PDT

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, foreground, is welcomed by the U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva Amb. Betty E. King, on arrival at Cointrin Airport, in Geneva, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2013, prior to his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to discuss the ongoing problems in Syria. (AP Photo/Larry Downing, Pool)GENEVA (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and his team open two days of meetings with their Russian counterparts on Thursday, hoping to emerge with the outlines of a plan for the complex task of safely securing and destroying vast stockpiles of Syrian chemical weapons in the midst of a brutal and unpredictable conflict.


U.S.-Kurdistan Business Council Meets With Senior Delegation From The Kurdistan Regional Government

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 08:37 AM PDT

WASHINGTON, Sept. 12, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The United States Kurdistan Business Council (USKBC) this week heard about the latest political and economic developments in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq from a Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) ministerial-level delegation.Minister Falah Mustafa Bakir, Head of the KRG Department of Foreign Relations, and Bayan Sami Abdul Rahman, the KRG's High Representative to the United Kingdom, briefed USKBC companies about events in Kurdistan, Iraq and the broader Middle East.Mr. ...

Iran boosted by US holding off on Syria strike: experts

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 08:13 AM PDT

Iranian President Hassan Rowhani attends a session of the Assembly of Experts in Tehran on September 3, 2013Iran has been emboldened by Washington's decision to hold fire on launching military strikes against its key ally Syria, which has also boosted Tehran's position on its controversial nuclear drive, experts say.


Syria chemical arms destruction 'immensely difficult': IISS

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 07:57 AM PDT

A UN arms expert collects samples on August 29, 2013, from the site of an apparent chemical attack close to DamascusDestroying Syria's chemical weapons under a Russian plan would be "immensely difficult" and may do little to end the conflict there, the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) said on Thursday.


Dozens of Syrian rebels and Kurds killed in clashes

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 07:36 AM PDT

BEIRUT (Reuters) - A surge of clashes in Syria's oil-producing northeast has killed dozens of rebels and Kurdish fighters in the past two days, activists said on Thursday, in fighting that highlights a struggle for territory and resources. Fighters from Syria's ethnic Kurdish minority - roughly 10 percent of the 23-million-strong population - have carved out an increasingly autonomous region near the frontiers with Iraq and Turkey. ...

Wounded vets to meet marathon bombing victims

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 07:35 AM PDT

FILE-- This July 3, 2013 file photograph shows Boston Marathon bombing survivor Mery Daniel smiling during a break in her physical therapy session at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, in Boston. Some Boston Marathon bombing amputees, including Daniel, will be meeting with wounded military veterans as part of a nonprofit's efforts to raise money for both groups. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)BOSTON (AP) — Wounded veterans and Boston Marathon bombing survivors who lost limbs planned to come together in Boston on Thursday to share their experiences and send a message that life goes on.


As Iraq's economy tries to rebound, bureaucracy brings it down

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 07:23 AM PDT

Years of declining violence have improved Iraq's economic prospects, and the market is once again ripe for investment. In 2012, the nation's per capita GDP climbed to $6,300, up from just $1,300 in 2004.

Syrian rebels blast Russian offer on chemical arms

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 07:13 AM PDT

In this Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2013 photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, a Syrian government solider aims his weapon during clashes with Free Syrian Army fighters, not pictured, in Maaloula village, northeast of the capital Damascus, Syria. Heavy fighting between Syrian government troops and rebels flared again on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2013 in the ancient, predominantly Christian village of Maaloula. Troops are trying to flush out rebel units, including two that are linked to al-Qaida, from the hilltop enclave which they broke into last week. (AP Photo/SANA)BEIRUT (AP) — Syria's top rebel commander called Thursday for regime officials to be put on trial for carrying out an alleged chemical attack near Damascus that killed hundreds last month, blasting a Russian proposal for securing the country's chemical arsenal.


Activists: Syrian rebel infighting kills nearly 50

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 06:35 AM PDT

In this Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2013 photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, a Syrian government solider aims his weapon during clashes with Free Syrian Army fighters, not pictured, in Maaloula village, northeast of the capital Damascus, Syria. Heavy fighting between Syrian government troops and rebels flared again on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2013 in the ancient, predominantly Christian village of Maaloula. Troops are trying to flush out rebel units, including two that are linked to al-Qaida, from the hilltop enclave which they broke into last week. (AP Photo/SANA)BEIRUT (AP) — Activists say infighting between rebel forces in Syria has killed at least 50 in clashes in the country's northeast.


Iraqi Kurd nature reserve bids to shed violent legacy

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 06:27 AM PDT

A view of the Halgurd-Sakran National Park, 170km northeast of the Iraqi city of Arbil, on September 1, 2013Near Iraq's northernmost point, close to Turkey and Iran, a national park of snow-capped peaks and forested valleys is drawing tourists and researchers keen to explore a hardly touched land.


Three soldiers among 7 killed in Iraq attacks

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 04:54 AM PDT

Iraqis carry the coffin of a victim of a sectarian attack, in a Baghdad funeral procession on September 12, 2013A spate of attacks across Iraq killed seven people on Thursday, including three who died when a suicide car bomber struck as recruits were leaving a military base, officials said.


Your Syria Scorecard!

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 03:27 AM PDT

With the Syrian mess changing daily if not hourly, it's hard to keep track of where important figures stand on this grave matter. The president and many members of Congress seem to have embraced the idea of giving Damascus a chance to turn over its chemical members. With some time to go before Congress has to take a vote on the matter, consider where the equally divided punditocracy stands on a military strike. It's not a simple left-right split of course. It's not even a bomb or don't-bomb split. That's why you need a scorecard. ...

Syria crisis exposes rifts in U.S.-German ties

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 03:19 AM PDT

German Chancellor Merkel and U.S. President Obama walk together during the family picture event during the G20 summit in St.PetersburgThe largest country in the European Union has been decidedly reluctant to follow President Obama's call for robust action in Syria.


Last Iranian dissidents moved out of Iraq camp after violence

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 02:10 AM PDT

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The last remaining Iranian dissidents in a camp in eastern Iraq have been transferred to a base in Baghdad pending resettlement abroad, the United Nations said on Thursday, less than two weeks after a bout of violence that killed 52 people there. The dissidents belong to the Mujahadin-e-Khalq (MEK), which wants Iran's clerical leaders overthrown, and are no longer welcome in Iraq under the Tehran-aligned, Shi'ite Muslim-led government that replaced late Sunni dictator Saddam Hussein. ...

Survivors of Iran exile camp slaughter move to Baghdad

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 01:49 AM PDT

An Iraqi soldier inspects prefabricated houses at Camp Liberty near Baghdad's airport on February 17, 2012The survivors of a mass killing in an Iraqi camp housing Iranian exiles were moved during the night to another camp on the edge of Baghdad, the United Nations said on Thursday.


Striking Syria: Is Obama too Much Like Bush -- or not Enough?

Posted: 12 Sep 2013 12:00 AM PDT

For a president who distinguished himself from his predecessor by promising to extricate the United States from Iraq and Afghanistan, Barack Obama suddenly appears determined to maroon his own presidency in Syria. But critics who worry that Obama is imitating George W. Bush are missing the central irony in his predicament — which stems from his failure to mimic Bush closely enough.

Lack of Assad alternatives hangs over Syria war

Posted: 11 Sep 2013 11:24 PM PDT

FILE - In this Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2012 file photo, Free Syrian Army fighters clean their weapons and check ammunition at their base on the outskirts of Aleppo, Syria. President Barack Obama said early on in the 2 1/2-year-old conflict that Assad lost the right to lead because of the brutal oppression of his people, most chillingly displayed in what Washington contends was an Aug. 21 chemical weapons attack on rebel-held areas that killed hundreds of civilians. But it's not clear who would replace Assad if he were to be driven from power, either as a result of U.S. punitive strikes for the suspected poison gas attacks or in eventual political transition talks with the Western-backed opposition. (AP Photo/ Khalil Hamra, File)BEIRUT (AP) — The crisis over chemical weapons in Syria has underlined a central dilemma for the West as it tries to deal with the country's civil war — the lack of attractive alternatives to President Bashar Assad.


After seeing Iraq up close, top U.S. general wary on Syria

Posted: 11 Sep 2013 10:08 PM PDT

General Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, presents the administration's case for U.S. military action against Syria to a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing in WashingtonBy David Alexander WASHINGTON (Reuters) - America's top military officer General Martin Dempsey has already seen one Middle Eastern civil war. He is much more cautious about involvement in another. While Dempsey, 61, has argued in favor of the White House's idea of limited military strikes against Syria and arming moderate rebels, he has made clear his lack of enthusiasm for widening America's role in the conflict much beyond that. A decade ago, Dempsey was a brigadier general commanding the 1st Armored Division in Baghdad. ...


U.N. report may hint at source of Syria chemical attack

Posted: 11 Sep 2013 08:29 PM PDT

U.N. peacekeeping inspectors leave the Masnaa border crossing between Lebanon and SyriaBy Louis Charbonneau and Anthony Deutsch UNITED NATIONS/AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - U.N. chemical weapons investigators will not explicitly pin the blame on anyone in their upcoming report on the August 21 poison gas attack in Syria, but diplomats say their factual reporting alone could suggest which side in the country's civil war was responsible. The report could easily become a bargaining chip in talks between Moscow and Western powers on conditions for Syria to give up its chemical weapons and the terms of a United Nations Security Council resolution on the matter. ...


20 best Twitter reactions to Vladimir Putin's dovish New York Times op-ed

Posted: 11 Sep 2013 08:05 PM PDT

Vladimir Putin: New York Times commentator.Russian President Vladimir Putin has an op-ed in Thursday's New York Times, urging the American people and their representatives to exercise caution in Syria.


4 angriest liberal laments about Obama's Syria policy

Posted: 11 Sep 2013 05:15 PM PDT

That sound you just heard is a whole warden of bleeding hearts exsanguinating. Every relationship hits a rough patch, but the bond between President Obama and a certain breed of liberal intellectuals -- think pragmatic, explanatory, unsure of all the answers themselves -- has been unbreakable. Sure, these analysts have criticized Obama in the past, but it was in the spirit of good-natured and helpful chiding. And their assistance in explaining Obama's health care plan better than he could was invaluable in convincing some Democrats to support it. In the wake of the Syria... ...

Putin plays trump card in high-stakes Syria standoff

Posted: 11 Sep 2013 05:10 PM PDT

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting at the state residence outside Moscow on September 12, 2013After over two years of isolation and vilification as the last significant friend of Bashar al-Assad, Russian President Vladimir Putin appears for now to have played a trump card in the Syrian crisis with a plan for the regime to hand over chemical weapons.


0 条评论:

发表评论

订阅 博文评论 [Atom]

<< 主页

bnzv