Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• U.S. military tears down Army base site of mass killing in Texas
• Soldiers mugging around empty casket sparks furor
• Ex-soldier convicted of killing Iraqi family dies in prison
• Obama struggling to find winning formula in Syria
• Asylum seeker dies in violent protest at PNG camp
• Influential Iraqi cleric rebukes government
• Qaeda member planned Madrid train attacks: researcher
• EU's stance forces US executioners to improvise
• Powerful cleric Sadr slams Iraq govt, 'tyrant' PM
• Journalist on assignment deaths total 134 last year: report
• Iraq violence kills 33
• Lebanon government deal brings hope to fragile state
• Young Pakistani activist sympathizes with Syrians
• Is Al Qaeda Aiding Assad?
• Egypt Terror Group Gives Tourists Two Days to Get Out
• Iraqi PM defends counterterrorism strategy as bombs kill 49
• Europe at origin of chronic US execution dilemma
• Rockers in the sacristy: Book recounts St. Francis' famous fans
• Will America forget its veterans?
• Iraq's Sadr, lion of Shiite poor, quits politics. Boon for Maliki?
• Car bombings kill at least 33 people in Iraq
• Lebanon looks to Kuwait for Saudi-Iranian rapprochement
• Firebrand Iraqi Shiite cleric affirms retirement
• Iraq car bombs 'kill 13'
• From troops to troupe for war-wounded Australian soldiers
• Despite Iraq's troubles, archaeologists are back
• Car bombs kill at least 10 people in Iraqi capital
• Bomb attacks kill at least 24 in Iraq capital

U.S. military tears down Army base site of mass killing in Texas Posted: 18 Feb 2014 04:39 PM PST By Lisa Maria Garza DALLAS (Reuters) - The U.S. military has demolished the building at a Texas base where a former Army psychiatrist went on a shooting rampage in 2009, killing 13 people and wounding 32 others, military officials said on Tuesday. The central Texas military base is where soldiers prepare to deploy to Iraq and Afghanistan. Nidal Hasan, an American-born Muslim, opened fire on unarmed soldiers preparing for deployment on November 5, 2009 in what he later called retaliation for U.S. wars in the Muslim world.

Soldiers mugging around empty casket sparks furor Posted: 18 Feb 2014 03:37 PM PST MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Wisconsin National Guard announced Tuesday that it had suspended a member from honor guard duties after she apparently posted to social media a photograph of soldiers mugging around an empty, flag-draped casket.

Ex-soldier convicted of killing Iraqi family dies in prison Posted: 18 Feb 2014 03:12 PM PST LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (AP) — A former soldier convicted in 2009 of raping and killing a teenage Iraqi girl and using a shotgun to gun down her family died in an Arizona prison over the weekend in what officials suspect was a suicide.

Obama struggling to find winning formula in Syria Posted: 18 Feb 2014 02:56 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — With peace talks failing, Syria's government on the offensive and moderate rebels pushed aside by al-Qaida-linked militants, the Obama administration is struggling for new ideas to halt a savage civil war.

Asylum seeker dies in violent protest at PNG camp Posted: 18 Feb 2014 02:15 PM PST CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Police in Papua New Guinea opened fire after hundreds of men pushed down the perimeter fence and broke out of an Australian-run detention camp for asylum seekers during a violent protest in which one inmate was killed and scores were injured, an Australian official said.

Influential Iraqi cleric rebukes government Posted: 18 Feb 2014 12:37 PM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Just days after announcing he was retiring from politics, a hard-line Shiite cleric who has traditionally played the role of kingmaker delivered a scathing rebuke of the Iraqi government and even politicians in his own movement Tuesday, suggesting he's not giving up his influence as national elections draw near.

Qaeda member planned Madrid train attacks: researcher Posted: 18 Feb 2014 12:08 PM PST The deadly train bombings that struck Madrid in 2004 were directly planned by an Al-Qaeda member, a Spanish terrorism expert said Tuesday, presenting a study of new evidence from intelligence officials. Spanish courts sentenced 18 people for the bombings, which killed 191 people on two packed commuter trains on March 11, 2004, ruling that they were inspired by -- but not organised by -- Al-Qaeda. But a new book by terrorism expert Fernando Reinares indicates the bombings were instigated by a senior Al-Qaeda member and the armed Islamist movement directly "approved and facilitated" them. Reinares said that since 2008 he had been studying official documents from several countries and from Al-Qaeda itself and interviewing intelligence officials in Pakistan and elsewhere.

EU's stance forces US executioners to improvise Posted: 18 Feb 2014 11:21 AM PST BRUSSELS (AP) — There's one big reason the United States has a dearth of execution drugs so acute that some states are considering solutions such as firing squads and gas chambers: Europe won't allow the drugs to be exported because of its fierce hostility to capital punishment.

Powerful cleric Sadr slams Iraq govt, 'tyrant' PM Posted: 18 Feb 2014 10:48 AM PST Powerful Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr on Tuesday slammed Iraq's government as corrupt and its leader as a "tyrant" while calling on citizens to vote, days after announcing his exit from politics. "Politics became a door for injustice and carelessness, and the abuse and humiliation of the rule of a dictator and tyrant who controls the funds, so he loots them... and the cities, so he attacks them, and the sects, so he divides them," Sadr said. Iraqis "must participate in these elections in a major way, so that the government does not fall into the hands of the dishonest," Sadr said. "I will remain for all -- not for the Sadrists only, for I dedicated myself to Iraq and to Islam," Sadr said in comments indicating he still could play an influential role in Iraq's political future.

Journalist on assignment deaths total 134 last year: report Posted: 18 Feb 2014 10:37 AM PST One hundred and thirty-four journalists and media support staff were killed while on reporting assignments last year, most of them targeted deliberately, the London-based International News Safety Institute (INSI) said on Tuesday. Of these, 65 died covering armed conflicts - primarily in Syria, where 20 were killed, and Iraq, where the death total was 16 - while 51 were killed in peacetime covering issues like crime and corruption, and 18 died in accidents. The total was down from 152 deaths recorded in 2012, but there was an accompanying rise in assaults, threats and kidnappings directed at journalists which largely go unreported, said the INSI study, "Killing the Messenger." The institute, funded by major world news organizations including Reuters, has been issuing the report since 1996. Its main work is providing security training for journalists reporting in dangerous situations.

Iraq violence kills 33 Posted: 18 Feb 2014 10:36 AM PST Violence in Iraq killed 33 people on Tuesday, more than half of them in car bombings in the Baghdad region that followed similar blasts the previous day, officials said. And three more car bombs exploded in Hilla, south of Baghdad, killing five people, while one in Mussayib and another in Iskandiriyah killed four more. The attacks followed four car bombs in Baghdad on Monday that killed at least 16 people. The bloodshed in Iraq has reached a level not seen since 2008, when the country was emerging from a brutal period of sectarian killings that claimed tens of thousands of lives.

Lebanon government deal brings hope to fragile state Posted: 18 Feb 2014 10:31 AM PST By Tom Perry BIKFAYA, Lebanon (Reuters) - A week ago, Lebanon was without a government and facing the prospect of an even deeper crisis come May, when President Michel Suleiman's term was set to expire with no agreement on his replacement. But in a matter of days, a degree of hope has returned to the politics of a country plunged into crisis by the war in neighboring Syria. Lebanon has a government after nearly a year without one, fuelling hope that a new president will follow. Amin Gemayel, president for six years during Lebanon's own 1975-90 civil war, attributed the breakthrough to fears the state might be on the verge of total collapse, and "regional understandings" - Lebanese parlance for a greenlight from states that wield influence here, particularly Saudi Arabia and Iran.

Young Pakistani activist sympathizes with Syrians Posted: 18 Feb 2014 10:10 AM PST ZAATARI CAMP, Jordan (AP) — A teenage Pakistani activist who came to the international limelight when she was shot by the Taliban said Tuesday that the plight of Syrian refugee children deprived of proper education was a stark reminder of the "dark days" Pakistani children under their hard-line rulers.

Is Al Qaeda Aiding Assad? Posted: 18 Feb 2014 10:00 AM PST Moderate rebels say the Syrian president is secretly working with a rogue al Qaeda group in the country's brutal civil war. But are Sunni jihadists really in bed with the Assad regime?

Egypt Terror Group Gives Tourists Two Days to Get Out Posted: 18 Feb 2014 09:38 AM PST Ansar Jerusalem, a shadowy but prolific terrorist group based in Egypt's lawless Sinai Peninsula, has announced it carried out the bombing of a tourist bus near the crossing to Israel on Sunday – and warned tourists across Egypt to leave the country "before it's too late." Ansar, also known as Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, has emerged as the most formidable and deadliest among a half-dozen extremists groups that announced themselves in the Sinai after the overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak in February 2011. The tempo, ferocity and range of its attacks increased sharply after July 3 last year, when Egypt's military ousted the country's then President — the Muslim Brotherhood official Mohamed Morsi, an Islamist elected as Mubarak's successor. In its statement warning tourists to leave Egypt by Thursday (Feb. 20), Ansar said the bus bombing was "part of our economic war attacks on this traitorous hireling regime, which plundered the nation's wealth." Analysts say Ansar Jerusalem, which translates as "Supporters of Jerusalem," is thought to field a few hundred fighters, drawn mainly from radicalized members of Sinai's northern Bedouin tribes, who have historically resented Cairo for its neglect of the region.

Iraqi PM defends counterterrorism strategy as bombs kill 49 Posted: 18 Feb 2014 09:07 AM PST By Ahmed Rasheed and Ali al-Rubaie BAGHDAD/HILLA, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki defended his government's counterterrorism strategy and vowed to defeat al Qaeda as bombs exploded in Baghdad and another Iraqi city on Tuesday, killing at least 49 people. Maliki said the battle against militancy in Iraq was part of a larger struggle emanating from the civil war in Syria that poses a threat to the wider Middle East and the entire world, and appealed for international support. "Iraq has defeated al Qaeda before, and we have a holistic strategy to defeat al Qaeda again," Maliki wrote in an editorial published on Tuesday on the website of U.S. international affairs journal Foreign Policy.

Europe at origin of chronic US execution dilemma Posted: 18 Feb 2014 09:00 AM PST BRUSSELS (AP) — There's one big reason the United States has a dearth of execution drugs so acute that some states are considering solutions such as firing squads and gas chambers: Europe won't allow the drugs to be exported because of its fierce hostility to capital punishment.

Rockers in the sacristy: Book recounts St. Francis' famous fans Posted: 18 Feb 2014 08:04 AM PST By Philip Pullella ROME (Reuters) - What do Bruce Springsteen, Mick Jagger's daughter, Carlos Santana and Patti Smith have in common? St. Francis of Assisi, known worldwide for his simple spirituality, his closeness to the poor, his love of nature and his preaching of peace, has some unlikely admirers. Father Enzo Fortunato, the spokesman and public face of the convent complex in Assisi where the Francis is buried, has written a new book on the people who have been influenced by the teachings of the gentle saint who gave up his worldly goods. "Vado da Francesco" (I am going to Francis), takes the reader on a historical trip through accounts of the visitors to the basilica in the past few decades.

Will America forget its veterans? Posted: 18 Feb 2014 07:57 AM PST When the camera first panned to Michelle Obama sitting next to Sgt. 1st Class Cory Remsburg, a wounded warrior, during President Obama's State of the Union message last month, my breath caught in my throat. This proud noncommissioned officer was a guest of the first lady, and his presence alone was forcing all who saw him to remember that America remains a nation at war. Later, the president told the story of meeting Remsburg shortly before he was injured on his 10th combat deployment, and of the long and grueling path to recovery he still travels. My husband, Brian, sustained a penetrating traumatic brain injury from a roadside bomb in Iraq in October 2003, long before many of today's systems and services available to support wounded troops and military families existed.

Iraq's Sadr, lion of Shiite poor, quits politics. Boon for Maliki? Posted: 18 Feb 2014 05:55 AM PST Powerful Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has withdrawn from politics, overnight dismantling his influential political movement in a move that has stunned his followers and handed a pre-election boost to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. "Who is going to benefit from this?

Car bombings kill at least 33 people in Iraq Posted: 18 Feb 2014 05:22 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — A new wave of car bombs ripped through commercial areas in the Iraqi capital and areas to the south Tuesday, killing at least 33 people and wounding dozens in the latest coordinated militant assault, officials said.

Lebanon looks to Kuwait for Saudi-Iranian rapprochement Posted: 18 Feb 2014 03:57 AM PST Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri urged Kuwait to keep trying to build bridges between Iran and Saudi Arabia to encourage a rapprochement between two regional heavyweights backing opposite sides in Syria's civil war. Wedged between three big regional powers - Shi'ite Muslim Iran, Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia and Shi'ite-led Iraq at the northern end of the Gulf, Kuwait has tried to maintain good relations with all three in recent years. All of this makes Kuwait a potential go-between in the intractable conflict between Syrian President Bashar al-Assad - whose strongest regional ally is Iran - and Saudi-backed Sunni rebels trying to overthrow him.

Firebrand Iraqi Shiite cleric affirms retirement Posted: 18 Feb 2014 03:13 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — In a rare televised address, firebrand Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr affirmed on Tuesday his earlier statement that he was retiring from politics, but also called on his followers to vote in Iraq's upcoming elections and berated current rulers as "blood-thirsty wolves."

Iraq car bombs 'kill 13' Posted: 18 Feb 2014 02:55 AM PST Seven car bombs in central Iraq -- three in Baghdad and four to its south -- killed 13 people on Tuesday, officials said, after another series of blasts the day before. Bayaa in south Baghdad was hit by two car bombs which killed five people, while another exploded in a nearby area, killing two. And three more car bombs exploded in Hilla, south of Baghdad, killing five people and wounding 22, while another in Mussayib killed one and wounded 23. The attacks followed four car bombs in Baghdad on Monday that killed at least 16 people.

From troops to troupe for war-wounded Australian soldiers Posted: 18 Feb 2014 12:57 AM PST As Australia's decade-long mission in Afghanistan draws to a close and war-weary troops return home, one courageous group are reliving their experiences in a different kind of theatre. Lance Corporal Craig Hancock served three tours of Afghanistan -- two of them carrying the silent psychological wounds of a roadside bomb attack that left him self-medicating and unable to ask for help for fear of letting down his friends. But that's nothing compared to stepping out on stage in front of a full house at the Sydney Theatre Company. "Put me over in Afghanistan, no dramas.

Despite Iraq's troubles, archaeologists are back Posted: 17 Feb 2014 11:50 PM PST By Alistair Lyon UR, Iraq (Reuters) - Ur's palaces and temples lie in ruins, but its hulking Ziggurat still dominates the desert flatlands of what is now southern Iraq, as it has for millennia. Climbing the Ziggurat's baked-brick stairway to its wind-scoured summit, you gaze over the royal cemetery excavated 90 years ago by Leonard Woolley, a Briton who recovered treasures rivalling those found in Tutankhamen's tomb in Egypt in 1924. Very little work has been done here since, but British archaeologists are now back in the area despite the insecurity in Iraq that had kept them - and all but the most adventurous tourists - away from one of the world's oldest cities. Brushing the caked dust from their clothes, Jane Moon and Stuart Campbell arrive back in Ur from another day of digging in a smaller settlement at Tell Khaiber, 20 km (13 miles) away.

Car bombs kill at least 10 people in Iraqi capital Posted: 17 Feb 2014 11:29 PM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Officials say two car bombs in Baghdad have killed at least 10 people.

Bomb attacks kill at least 24 in Iraq capital Posted: 17 Feb 2014 09:18 PM PST At least 24 people were killed in bomb explosions in the Iraqi capital late on Monday, including blasts near two Shi'ite Muslim mosques and at a busy bus station, police and medics said. No group immediately claimed responsibility for any of the attacks, but Shi'ites are often targeted by Sunni Islamist insurgents who have been regaining ground in Iraq over the past year and overran several towns in recent weeks. In Monday's deadliest attack, a minibus packed with explosives blew up at a bus station in the mainly Shi'ite district of Ur in northern Baghdad, killing at least 11 people, police and medical sources said. A further nine people were killed in car bomb attacks targeting mosques in Baghdad's predominantly Shi'ite districts of Amil and Karrada, police and medical sources said.

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