Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Obama prepared to authorize air strikes in Syria against Islamic State
• Obama shifts on Syrian rebels, but is it too late?
• Bill to fund U.S. government ensnared in debate about Islamic State
• Islamic State strategy: Divisions in Congress surface ahead of Obama’s speech
• Andrew Cuomo Can’t Ignore It Now
• Obama eyes air strikes in Syria, fixing Iraqi army
• Obama: US to expand airstrikes on Islamic State
• Islamic State group not an unstoppable juggernaut
• Preview Of Obama’s Remarks On ‘Strategy’ For ISIS
• Obama to deepen America's military role in Mideast
• Obama vows air power against IS 'wherever they exist'
• Obama says in speech U.S. to lead 'broad coalition' against Islamic State
• Obama Vows to Hunt Down ISIS 'Wherever They Exist'
• Most US strikes in Iraq focused on defending Mosul dam
• As Obama addresses US strategy on Islamic State, how do Americans feel?
• Kerry says US will back Iraq against militants
• White House to hold summit on violent extremism
• US Congress may soon vote to arm, train Syria rebels
• Obama outlining mission to fight Islamic militants
• US woman must aid FBI as part of terror plea
• Colorado woman must aid FBI as part of terror plea
• Colorado teen pleads guilty to conspiring to assist Islamic State
• U.S. to alert retailers to bomb materials to counter home-grown threat
• US teen admits plotting to help IS militants
• Reid calls for vote on training Syrian rebels
• Top 3 questions Obama needs to answer in his speech on Islamic State
• Obama authorizes $25 million in immediate military aid to Iraq: White House
• France says will take part in Iraq military air operation if needed
• Oil prices fall on OPEC forecast, US supplies
• AP Interview: De Blasio says NY will remain target
• Obama to brace Americans for escalating conflict with Islamic State
• Obama Urgently Wants Congress to Vote on Arming Syrian Rebels
• Colorado woman pleads guilty to conspiring to aid Islamist rebels
• 5 Obama Foreign Policy Statements That He Might Refute Tonight
• Investing 101: Why share buybacks are on the rise
• US, Gulf facing own failures in jihadist threat: analysts
• House Benghazi Select Committee Finally Gets Around to Holding a Hearing
• Attacks kill 30 people in Iraq's capital, Baghdad
• Dick Cheney lectures Obama on Islamic State
• Blasts kill 19 as Kerry visits Baghdad

Obama prepared to authorize air strikes in Syria against Islamic State Posted: 10 Sep 2014 04:47 PM PDT By Steve Holland and Roberta Rampton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will vow on Wednesday to attack Islamic State militants "wherever they exist" in a speech to Americans expected to lay out a strategy for expanding U.S. Obama will stress in his 9 p.m. (0100 GMT Thursday) speech from the White House that he will not send U.S.

Obama shifts on Syrian rebels, but is it too late? Posted: 10 Sep 2014 04:31 PM PDT By Warren Strobel WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Struggling Syrian rebels that President Barack Obama once derided as "former doctors, farmers, pharmacists and so forth" now form a key pillar of the U.S. For over three years, Obama has kept the so-called moderate rebels at arm's length. Now Obama is taking a different tack as he sets out his strategy to defeat the Syrian-based Islamic State, which has declared a caliphate across a wide swath of Syria and Iraq. Obama himself was the chief mover behind the shift in U.S.

Bill to fund U.S. government ensnared in debate about Islamic State Posted: 10 Sep 2014 04:20 PM PDT By Richard Cowan WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has asked the U.S. Congress to authorize American aid for rebel groups fighting the Islamic State militants in Syria as part of a stop-gap funding bill that would avert a U.S. Obama's request has slowed action on the emergency spending bill, delaying a vote in the House of Representatives that had been planned for Thursday. Obama is due to outline in an address to the American people on Wednesday evening the United States' plans against the Islamic State, a radical Muslim organization, which has claimed credit for the beheading of two American journalists.

Islamic State strategy: Divisions in Congress surface ahead of Obama’s speech Posted: 10 Sep 2014 04:16 PM PDT A chief goal of President Obama's in his speech Wednesday night is to unify the nation and Congress around his plan to "degrade and ultimately destroy" the militant Islamic State in Syria and Iraq. On the policy front, Senator Reid stood firmly by Mr. Obama's approach of strategic airstrikes, no boots on the ground, and international coalitions to destroy the Islamic State (IS), also known as ISIS or ISIL.

Andrew Cuomo Can’t Ignore It Now Posted: 10 Sep 2014 04:10 PM PDT Zephyr Teachout clocked the governor Tuesday in big, progressive stretches of New York, taking 35 percent of the primary vote. Is this the wakeup call the Democratic Party needs?

Obama eyes air strikes in Syria, fixing Iraqi army Posted: 10 Sep 2014 04:00 PM PDT President Barack Obama will vow in a national address Wednesday to target the Islamic State with air strikes "wherever they exist" in a sign he plans to attack the jihadists inside Syria for the first time. According to excerpts of his speech released by the White House, Obama will also pledge to lead a broad coalition to fight IS and work with "partner forces" on the ground in Syria and Iraq. The speech will mark a major US escalation, despite Obama having devoted much of his presidency to pulling America out of wars in the Middle East and avoiding new foreign entanglements. "This counter-terrorism campaign will be waged through a steady, relentless effort to take out ISIL wherever they exist using our air power and our support for partner forces on the ground," Obama says in the excerpts.

Obama: US to expand airstrikes on Islamic State Posted: 10 Sep 2014 03:52 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — In a major reversal, President Barack Obama moved Wednesday night to deepen the U.S. military role in the volatile Middle East, vowing to wage an unrelenting counterterror effort using airstrikes to target Islamic State fighters in both Iraq and Syria.

Islamic State group not an unstoppable juggernaut Posted: 10 Sep 2014 03:52 PM PDT BEIRUT (AP) — The Islamic State group is often described as the most fearsome jihadi outfit of all: a global menace outweighing al-Qaida, with armies trembling before its advance.

Preview Of Obama’s Remarks On ‘Strategy’ For ISIS Posted: 10 Sep 2014 03:48 PM PDT President Obama will address the nation Wednesday evening at 9 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, to discuss his strategy for dealing with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Our objective is clear: we will degrade, and ultimately destroy, ISIL through a comprehensive and sustained counter-terrorism strategy." …… This counter-terrorism campaign will be waged through a steady, relentless effort to take out ISIL wherever they exist using our air power and our support for partner forces on the ground.

Obama to deepen America's military role in Mideast Posted: 10 Sep 2014 03:47 PM PDT President Barack Obama is moving to deepen the U.S. military role in the volatile Middle East, including training and arming Syrian rebels to fight Islamic State militants and potentially expanding airstrikes across the Iraqi border into Syria.

Obama vows air power against IS 'wherever they exist' Posted: 10 Sep 2014 03:40 PM PDT President Barack Obama will tell Americans in a prime time address Wednesday that he will go after Islamic State with air strikes "wherever they exist," in clear sign he will attack the jihadists inside Syria.

Obama says in speech U.S. to lead 'broad coalition' against Islamic State Posted: 10 Sep 2014 03:33 PM PDT President Barack Obama said on Wednesday the United States will lead a broad coalition to wage a relentless campaign to root out Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria "wherever they exist." "It will not involve American combat troops fighting on foreign soil," Obama said in excerpts of a speech he will make to the country on Wednesday night. "This counter-terrorism campaign will be waged through a steady, relentless effort to take out ISIL wherever they exist using our air power and our support for partner forces on the ground," Obama said, using an acronym for the militant group.

Obama Vows to Hunt Down ISIS 'Wherever They Exist' Posted: 10 Sep 2014 03:32 PM PDT President Obama plans to outline what he calls a "steady, relentless effort" to defeat Islamic State terrorists "wherever they exist" in a primetime address to the nation on Wednesday. The president will use the 9 p.m. speech from the White House to announce that the U.S. "Our objective is clear: We will degrade, and ultimately destroy, ISIL through a comprehensive and sustained counter-terrorism strategy," Obama will say during the speech, according to excerpts released by the White House on Wednesday evening. I want the American people to understand how this effort will be different from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Most US strikes in Iraq focused on defending Mosul dam Posted: 10 Sep 2014 03:11 PM PDT The majority of US air strikes in Iraq over the past month have targeted jihadists in the country's north fighting for control of the strategic Mosul dam, Pentagon officials said Wednesday, citing a tally of the raids. Out of 154 American bombing raids conducted since August 8 in Iraq, 91 of them were aimed at Islamic State (IS) militants threatening the Mosul dam in the country's north, US defense officials said. The Pentagon has declined to provide details about which US aircraft have carried out the bombing in Iraq or what bases in the region they were flying out of, apart from acknowledging that F-18 fighters on an aircraft carrier in the Gulf have taken part in the operations.

As Obama addresses US strategy on Islamic State, how do Americans feel? Posted: 10 Sep 2014 02:59 PM PDT Americans feel increasingly worried about Islamic extremism around the world – with 6 in 10 saying they are "very concerned" by the rise of groups including the militant Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. The Pew Research Center, which conducted the poll, hasn't found such strong concern in surveys going back to 2007. The Islamic State (IS) has been undertaking military actions in both Syria and Iraq, and has recently beheaded two American journalists, purportedly in response to US air strikes. All this is important context as Mr. Obama confronts key decisions about what course the US should take.

Kerry says US will back Iraq against militants Posted: 10 Sep 2014 02:58 PM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — The United States pledged Wednesday to stand by Iraq as its new leaders pleaded for help in facing down a rampant, deadly insurgency. The assurances by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry during a daylong visit to Baghdad came as President Barack Obama prepared to outline his strategy for defeating the Islamic State militant group that has overrun wide swaths of northern Iraq and Syria.

White House to hold summit on violent extremism Posted: 10 Sep 2014 02:57 PM PDT The White House will hold a summit on preventing violent extremism, the US Secretary of Homeland Security said Wednesday, warning that terrorists must "be engaged." The US continues "to face real terrorist enemies and real terrorist threats" from Islamic State jihadists who have overtaken large swaths of Syria and Iraq, Secretary Jeh Johnson said, one day ahead of the 13th anniversary of September 11. Johnson spoke only hours before President Barack Obama was to deliver a White House address in which he appeared poised to authorize air strikes against the Islamic State in Syria.

US Congress may soon vote to arm, train Syria rebels Posted: 10 Sep 2014 02:44 PM PDT US lawmakers could vote within days to authorize the military to arm and train moderate Syrian rebels, with Democrats drafting the legislation Wednesday in an effort to reverse advances by the Islamic State (IS). The possible move follows a last-minute request by President Barack Obama, who was scheduled to address the nation later Wednesday and lay out his plan to defeat the jihadist group that has rampaged across parts of Syria and Iraq. With the White House pushing Congress to include the rebel-training authority in a temporary government spending bill, the Republican-led House abruptly suspended that measure, a so-called continuing resolution (CR) which had been unveiled the previous night and was set for a Thursday vote. "Given the severity of the situation and the need for all members to properly evaluate the president's request, the House will postpone consideration of the continuing resolution," House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy announced.

Obama outlining mission to fight Islamic militants Posted: 10 Sep 2014 02:40 PM PDT The president will outline an expanded military and political effort to combat Islamic State militants in Syria and Iraq, possibly including airstrikes in Syria.

US woman must aid FBI as part of terror plea Posted: 10 Sep 2014 02:38 PM PDT DENVER (AP) — A 19-year-old woman pleaded guilty Wednesday to trying to help the militant Islamic State group under a plea deal in the terrorism case that requires her to give authorities information about other Americans with the same intentions.

Colorado woman must aid FBI as part of terror plea Posted: 10 Sep 2014 02:33 PM PDT DENVER (AP) — A 19-year-old Colorado woman pleaded guilty Wednesday to trying to help the militant Islamic State group under a plea deal in the terrorism case that requires her to give authorities information about other Americans with the same intentions.

Colorado teen pleads guilty to conspiring to assist Islamic State Posted: 10 Sep 2014 02:22 PM PDT A Colorado teenager pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday to conspiring to assist Islamic insurgents in Syria. Shannon Conley of Arvada, Colo., is charged with one count of conspiracy to provide material support to the militant group known as the Islamic State or IS (also known as ISIS or ISIL). During a hearing at the US federal courthouse in Denver, she agreed to a plea deal that requires her to help law enforcement identify other individuals with similar intentions. The 19-year-old has been held in Denver County Jail since federal agents arrested her on a Denver International Airport jetway on April 8.

U.S. to alert retailers to bomb materials to counter home-grown threat Posted: 10 Sep 2014 02:12 PM PDT By Doina Chiacu WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The government plans to give U.S. On the eve of the 13th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, Jeh Johnson said the so-called home-grown or "lone wolf" attack like last year's Boston Marathon bombing was the hardest to detect and the one he worried about most. He said his department would issue a public advisory to retailers this week identifying the materials and suspicious behavior to look for in anyone buying large quantities of them. Homemade bombs in pressure cooker pots were placed at the finish line of the famous race in Boston on April 15, 2013, killing three people and injuring 176 others in the worst attack on U.S.

US teen admits plotting to help IS militants Posted: 10 Sep 2014 01:49 PM PDT A US teenager pleaded guilty Wednesday to trying to help IS, in a deal with prosecutors requiring her to tell all she knows about the jihadist network in Syria and Iraq. Shannon Maureen Conley, 19, was arrested in April as she prepared to fly to Turkey to join a jihadist whom she had agreed to marry, and who was fighting in Syria. She was charged in July, but on Wednesday prosecutors announced a plea deal in which she admitted conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization. In exchange prosecutors agree not to charge her with any other criminal activity, according to the plea deal.

Reid calls for vote on training Syrian rebels Posted: 10 Sep 2014 01:48 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — In the run-up to a presidential address, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid called on Wednesday for a quick pre-election vote to approve the administration's request to train and equip Syrian rebels fighting terrorists seeking an Islamic state in the Middle East.

Top 3 questions Obama needs to answer in his speech on Islamic State Posted: 10 Sep 2014 01:45 PM PDT As President Obama prepares to make his case about the necessity of confronting the Islamic State – a fundamentalist self-designated "caliphate" that now controls large swaths of Iraq and Syria –  including the need for further US military strikes, there are key questions he must answer for the American people and for Pentagon officials who must carry out the strategy. 1. Why is the Islamic State a threat to US national security? "This is the most important thing the president needs to lay out for the American people," argues retired Col. Peter Mansoor, former executive officer to retired Gen. David Petraeus in Iraq and now an associate professor of military history at The Ohio State University. Defense analysts debate the capacity of IS, also known as ISIS and ISIL, to carry out a terrorist attack on US soil – the risk seems far greater for Europe than for American on this front, they note, with some 2,000 Westerners now believed to be fighting in Syria and Iraq.

Obama authorizes $25 million in immediate military aid to Iraq: White House Posted: 10 Sep 2014 01:44 PM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama authorized $25 million in "immediate military assistance" on Wednesday for the Iraqi government and Kurdistan Regional Government to help with military education and training, according to a memorandum posted on the White House website. (Reporting by Roberta Rampton; Editing by Doina Chiacu)

France says will take part in Iraq military air operation if needed Posted: 10 Sep 2014 01:35 PM PDT France said on Wednesday it would take part in military air action against Islamic State militants in Iraq if necessary, but it said any action it takes against the group in Syria would take a different form. "In Iraq ... we will take part in military air action if necessary. The situation in Syria is different," Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said in a speech at the Sciences Po academy in Paris.

Oil prices fall on OPEC forecast, US supplies Posted: 10 Sep 2014 01:23 PM PDT World oil prices dropped Wednesday after OPEC trimmed its oil demand growth forecast and a US supply report showed surprisingly high inventories. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for October delivery declined $1.08 to $91.67 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, its lowest closing price since January. European benchmark Brent oil for October delivery fell $1.12 to $98.04 a barrel on the Intercontinental Exchange in London. The Organization for Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) revised down slightly its global oil demand growth forecasts for both 2014 and 2015.

AP Interview: De Blasio says NY will remain target Posted: 10 Sep 2014 01:19 PM PDT NEW YORK (AP) — The 2001 terrorist attacks are closely associated with a pair of New York City mayors.

Obama to brace Americans for escalating conflict with Islamic State Posted: 10 Sep 2014 01:14 PM PDT Exactly one year ago, President Barack Obama delivered a prime-time speech to defend his Syria policy. Facing a war-weary public broadly opposed to his call for even limited airstrikes, and a divided Congress not at all eager to risk the political price of giving him the authority to go to war, Obama defended his plan to bomb Bashar Assad's forces in response to the Syrian strongman's alleged use of chemical weapons. And then he dramatically turned away from military action in favor of diplomacy.

Obama Urgently Wants Congress to Vote on Arming Syrian Rebels Posted: 10 Sep 2014 01:03 PM PDT Congress may have to vote on President Obama's ISIS strategy after all – or at least a part of it. The president told congressional leaders in a meeting on Tuesday that, according to the White House, "he has the authority he needs" to take on the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. A senior administration official confirmed to The Wire on Wednesday that the president was calling members of Congress to secure their support and had dispatched his chief counter-terrorism adviser, Lisa Monaco, to Capitol Hill to brief them in person. While Senate Democrats are drafting legislation in accordance with the president's request, House Republicans did not add it to the stopgap spending bill they unveiled on Tuesday night because it came at the last minute.

Colorado woman pleads guilty to conspiring to aid Islamist rebels Posted: 10 Sep 2014 01:01 PM PDT By Keith Coffman DENVER (Reuters) - A 19-year-old Colorado woman pleaded guilty in federal court on Wednesday to conspiring to provide material support to Islamic State militants who have seized large parts of Syria and Iraq. Shannon Maureen Conley has been in custody since her arrest in April for allegedly planning to travel overseas and join the Sunni Muslim militant group. Federal prosecutors charged the suburban Denver teenager with one count of conspiracy to provide material support to Islamic State, designated by the United States as a foreign terrorist organization. Wearing a head scarf, striped prison garb and handcuffs, Conley smiled at supporters as she was led into the courtroom.

5 Obama Foreign Policy Statements That He Might Refute Tonight Posted: 10 Sep 2014 12:40 PM PDT Will the President Walk Back his Past Statements About Mideast?

Investing 101: Why share buybacks are on the rise Posted: 10 Sep 2014 12:27 PM PDT Danielle Hughes on why share buybacks are all the rage right now

US, Gulf facing own failures in jihadist threat: analysts Posted: 10 Sep 2014 12:11 PM PDT In finally tackling the jihadist threat in Syria and Iraq, Washington and Gulf Arab states are confronting a "monster" that has come back to bite them, partly through their own failings, analysts say. After a stop Wednesday in Baghdad, US Secretary of State John Kerry will hold talks Thursday with Arab states and Turkey in Saudi Arabia to broaden an international alliance set to act against the Islamic State movement (IS). In a speech to the nation, President Barack Obama is also due Wednesday to outline a strategy to confront IS and address criticism his administration has failed to respond to the rise of a group whose atrocities have shocked the world. "It's good that they're finally trying to choke the monster that they -- if not created -- at least fed," said Francois Heisbourg of the Paris-based Foundation for Strategic Research.

House Benghazi Select Committee Finally Gets Around to Holding a Hearing Posted: 10 Sep 2014 12:00 PM PDT The once-ballyhooed House Select Committee on Benghazi will hold its first public hearing next week, more than four months after it was created. Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) has said it took time to hire staff, find office space and collect documents from the handful of other committees that had probed the terrorist attacks that killed four Americans, including the U.S. The hearing scheduled for Sept. 17 will examine the implementation of recommendations of the State Department's Accountability Review Board, according to an announcement Wednesday. While Democrats were initially concerned Republicans would time the new investigation to generate anti-Obama headlines ahead of this year's midterm elections, the committee's slow start now has them worried that Gowdy will drag his feet long enough to cause trouble for Hillary Clinton during her expected run for president in 2016.

Attacks kill 30 people in Iraq's capital, Baghdad Posted: 10 Sep 2014 11:56 AM PDT A series of attacks, mainly car bombings targeting security forces and markets, killed at least 30 people Wednesday in Iraq's capital, authorities said.

Dick Cheney lectures Obama on Islamic State Posted: 10 Sep 2014 11:56 AM PDT He spent eight years bending the ear of George W. Bush. On Wednesday, former vice president Dick Cheney sought to advise another US leader, this time over how to contend with violent jihadists. In a Washington speech, Cheney, an architect of the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, criticized a "disengaged" President Barack Obama for his defensive posture in the face of extremist threats, including those posed by the Islamic State (IS). "While the president was claiming the tide of war was receding and core Al-Qaeda had been decimated, the threat was actually increasing," Cheney said at the American Enterprise Institute think tank where he received a standing ovation.

Blasts kill 19 as Kerry visits Baghdad Posted: 10 Sep 2014 11:45 AM PDT Bomb attacks killed 19 people in Baghdad on Wednesday as US Secretary of State John Kerry visited the Iraqi capital for talks on combatting jihadists, officials said. They said a suicide car bombing followed by a car bomb struck near a police checkpoint in a crowded area of eastern Baghdad, also wounding at least 52 people. There was no immediate claim for the attack but suicide bombings are a hallmark of Sunni extremists, including those from the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group. IS-led militants overran swathes of Iraq in June, and security forces, Shiite militias and Kurdish fighters have been battling to regain ground.

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