Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Obama says farewell to defense chief as successor awaits vote
• Obama salutes Panetta as he prepares to retire
• Kerry says US weighing Syria options; mum on arms
• Syrian rebels preparing for advance on capital
• Budget cut woes leave military, families uncertain
• UN refugee agency says 5,000 fleeing Syria daily
• Car bombs in Shi'ite areas of Iraq kill 34
• Iraq bombs kill 36, Sunnis stage protest rallies
• U.N. says 5,000 Syrian refugees fleeing each day
• Mail Gets its First Suicide Bomber
• Iraq bombs kill 31, Sunnis stage protest rallies
• Car bombs hit Iraq markets, kill 31, wound dozens
• Car bombs hit markets in Iraq, killing 20 people
• Is America Ensnared in an Endless War?
• Cops: Photos may show Navy sniper before death
• Fired Los Angeles policeman blames LAPD for his troubles
• Rare Good News From Syria: A Dance Video Set to Usher

Obama says farewell to defense chief as successor awaits vote Posted: 08 Feb 2013 04:29 PM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama bade a fond farewell to retiring Defense Secretary Leon Panetta at a ceremony on Friday and voiced strong support for his nominated successor, Chuck Hagel, who was attacked by Republicans at a contentious Senate confirmation hearing last week. Panetta, in his 19 months as Pentagon chief, ended the ban on women serving in front-line combat roles and oversaw the integration of gays and lesbians serving openly in the military. The Iraq war ended and the last Afghanistan "surge" troops came home on his watch. ...

Obama salutes Panetta as he prepares to retire Posted: 08 Feb 2013 04:26 PM PST ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — Calling it "the honor of my life," Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said farewell to the U.S. military Friday, capping a venerated public service career that spanned four decades and included stints as a lawmaker, a top White House official and the spy chief who oversaw the killing of Osama bin Laden.

Kerry says US weighing Syria options; mum on arms Posted: 08 Feb 2013 03:49 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State John Kerry said Friday that the United States is evaluating new options to halt Syria's civil war, but he refused to weigh into administration debates over whether to arm the rebels fighting President Bashar Assad's regime.

Syrian rebels preparing for advance on capital Posted: 08 Feb 2013 12:28 PM PST BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian rebels brought their fight within a mile of the heart of Damascus on Friday, seizing army checkpoints and cutting a key highway with a row of burning tires as they pressed their campaign for the heavily guarded capital, considered the likely endgame in the nearly 2-year-old civil war.

Budget cut woes leave military, families uncertain Posted: 08 Feb 2013 10:36 AM PST NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — With family members waving from a pier, sailors aboard a Navy destroyer left for an overseas mission with more uncertainty than ever about their homecoming as potentially massive budget cuts reshape military plans.

UN refugee agency says 5,000 fleeing Syria daily Posted: 08 Feb 2013 09:01 AM PST GENEVA (AP) — The U.N. refugee agency says there has been a huge increase in the number of people fleeing Syria, with 5,000 refugees crossing the borders daily into neighboring countries.

Car bombs in Shi'ite areas of Iraq kill 34 Posted: 08 Feb 2013 05:52 AM PST BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Five car bombs killed at least 34 people in Shi'ite areas of Iraq on Friday, police and medics said, as sectarian and ethnic tensions intensify ahead of provincial elections in April. Two car bombs were detonated simultaneously at a bus stop near a Friday street market selling birds and other pets in the Shi'ite district of Kadhimiya in Baghdad, killing at least 16 people and wounding another 44, police and hospital sources said. Footage of the scene showed dozens of buses and taxis destroyed by the explosion and blood on the ground. ...

Iraq bombs kill 36, Sunnis stage protest rallies Posted: 08 Feb 2013 05:49 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Car bombs struck two outdoor markets and a group of taxi vans in Shiite areas across Iraq on Friday, killing at least 36 people and wounding nearly 100 in the bloodiest day in more than two months, as minority Sunnis staged large anti-government protests.

U.N. says 5,000 Syrian refugees fleeing each day Posted: 08 Feb 2013 04:51 AM PST GENEVA (Reuters) - About 5,000 refugees are fleeing Syria each day, seeking safe haven from war and its devastating impact on basic living conditions, the United Nations said on Friday. An acceleration in the exodus - up from 2,000 to 3,000 late last year - means the total could exceed one million refugees well before the end of June, its previous forecast, the U.N. refugee agency said. "This is a full-on crisis," Adrian Edwards, spokesman of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) told a news briefing in Geneva. ...

Mail Gets its First Suicide Bomber Posted: 08 Feb 2013 04:38 AM PST After French forces changed the dynamic of the conflict in Mali, it has now taken on another new, and sadly predictable, turn—suicide attacks. A Tuareg militant blew himself up next to a group Malian soliders on Friday, but fortunately he only killed himself and injured just one. It's the first suicide attack in Mali since French forces joined the fight against Islamic militants last month.

Iraq bombs kill 31, Sunnis stage protest rallies Posted: 08 Feb 2013 03:34 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Car bombs struck two outdoor markets in Shiite areas of Iraq on Friday, killing at least 31 people and wounding dozens in the bloodiest day in nearly a month, as minority Sunnis staged mass anti-government protests in a sign of mounting sectarian tensions.

Car bombs hit Iraq markets, kill 31, wound dozens Posted: 08 Feb 2013 01:32 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Four car bombs struck two outdoor markets in predominantly Shiite areas of Iraq on Friday, killing at least 31 people and wounding dozens at a time of mounting discontent among minority Sunnis.

Car bombs hit markets in Iraq, killing 20 people Posted: 08 Feb 2013 12:28 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Four car bombs struck two outdoor markets in Baghdad and a town south of the Iraqi capital on Friday, killing at least 20 people and wounding dozens, officials said.

Is America Ensnared in an Endless War? Posted: 08 Feb 2013 12:00 AM PST "When the president does it, that means that it is not illegal."

Cops: Photos may show Navy sniper before death Posted: 07 Feb 2013 06:08 PM PST LANCASTER, Texas (AP) — A cellphone seized from the home of an Iraq War veteran accused of killing a former Navy SEAL sniper and his friend may contain pictures of him with the victims before their deaths at a Texas shooting range, according to police documents released Thursday.

Fired Los Angeles policeman blames LAPD for his troubles Posted: 07 Feb 2013 06:06 PM PST LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A former police officer, accused of a vendetta-driven rampage against law enforcement, blames the Los Angeles police for many woes: his firing from the force, the end of his military career, and racism he says he encountered while employed by the police. This week, Christopher Dorner's anger over those perceived slights turned deadly, according to authorities who accuse him of gunning down five people, killing three, and sparking a massive manhunt across a large swathe of Southern California. ...

Rare Good News From Syria: A Dance Video Set to Usher Posted: 07 Feb 2013 05:41 PM PST RELATED: Can Bashar al-Assad Hang On in Syria?

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