Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Pope to urge tolerance in Turkey visit as Middle East wars rage
• For 600 migrants, harrowing sail ends in Greece
• ICRC seeks record $1.7 billion for humanitarian work in 2015
• Saudis block OPEC output cut, sending oil price plunging
• Pope condemns Islamic State violence
• Oil prices tank as OPEC leaves output unchanged
• Falling oil prices deal bigger economic blow to Africa than Ebola
• Mosul residents: IS group cuts phones in Iraq city
• Low expectations for oil output cut as OPEC meets
• France: Police arrest 2 over jihadi propaganda
• Red Cross seeks $1.68 billion for 2015
• Pope visits Turkey amid Christian-Muslim tensions
• Greece tows migrant-packed ship to safety off Crete
• How OPEC's Vienna Meeting is Playing Out So Far
• Iraq finance minister urges battle against graft in military
• With incentives and brute force, IS subdues tribes
• US 'horrified' by Syrian regime raids, slams Assad
• Bulgaria charges radical imam with supporting Islamic State

Pope to urge tolerance in Turkey visit as Middle East wars rage Posted: 27 Nov 2014 02:06 PM PST By Nick Tattersall and Ece Toksabay ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Pope Francis begins a visit to Turkey on Friday with the delicate mission of strengthening ties with Muslim leaders while condemning violence against Christians and other minorities in the Middle East. His three-day trip comes as Islamic State insurgents have captured swathes of Iraq and Syria just over Turkey's southern borders, declaring an Islamic caliphate and killing or driving out Shi'ite Muslims, Christians and others who do not share their ultra-radical brand of Sunni Islam. ...

For 600 migrants, harrowing sail ends in Greece Posted: 27 Nov 2014 10:52 AM PST IERAPETRA, Greece (AP) — Hour after hour, the coast guard boats shuttled from the crippled freighter to a concrete pier, discharging a steady flow of humanity: Families with small children, black-clad elderly women, battered-looking youths with backpacks.

ICRC seeks record $1.7 billion for humanitarian work in 2015 Posted: 27 Nov 2014 10:40 AM PST By Katie Nguyen LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) appealed on Thursday for a record 1.6 billion Swiss francs ($1.67 billion) to respond to humanitarian crises next year in Syria, South Sudan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia and other hotspots. The ICRC said its most costly operation in 2015 will be Syria, where more than three years of fighting have uprooted 7.2 million people inside the country and led 3.3 million to flee abroad, mainly to neighboring states like Lebanon and Jordan. ...

Saudis block OPEC output cut, sending oil price plunging Posted: 27 Nov 2014 10:38 AM PST VIENNA (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia blocked calls on Thursday from poorer members of the OPEC oil exporter group for production cuts to arrest a slide in global prices, sending benchmark crude plunging to a fresh four-year low.

Pope condemns Islamic State violence Posted: 27 Nov 2014 09:28 AM PST JERUSALEM (AP) — On the eve of a trip to the Middle East, Pope Francis is urging religious and political leaders to speak out against attacks on Christians by Islamic State extremists.

Oil prices tank as OPEC leaves output unchanged Posted: 27 Nov 2014 09:27 AM PST LONDON (AP) — Oil companies saw their shares take a beating Thursday as crude prices slid to their lowest in over four years in the wake of OPEC's decision to maintain production levels even though prices have fallen sharply in recent weeks.

Falling oil prices deal bigger economic blow to Africa than Ebola Posted: 27 Nov 2014 08:47 AM PST By Ed Cropley JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Plunging world oil prices have dealt a blow to Africa far greater - in purely economic terms - than Ebola, setting back investment in exploration and plans to industrialise. The highest profile victim so far has been Africa's top producer, Nigeria, which was forced to devalue its naira currency by 8 percent this week after the central bank admitted dwindling reserves were making it hard to defend it. ...

Mosul residents: IS group cuts phones in Iraq city Posted: 27 Nov 2014 07:43 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Militants from the Islamic State group blocked all mobile phone networks in the largest Iraqi city they control, Mosul, accusing informants in the city of tipping off coalition forces to their whereabouts, residents told The Associated Press on Thursday.

Low expectations for oil output cut as OPEC meets Posted: 27 Nov 2014 04:58 AM PST By Shadia Nasralla and David Sheppard VIENNA (Reuters) - Gulf oil producers led by Saudi Arabia are expected to press the case on Thursday for not yet cutting OPEC output, despite calls from several members of the group to bolster sagging prices by removing surplus crude from the market. Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi and his United Arab Emirates counterpart, Suhail bin Mohammed al-Mazroui, said on Wednesday they expected the oil market to stabilise itself. A Gulf OPEC delegate told Reuters the Gulf producers had reached a consensus not to cut output. ...

France: Police arrest 2 over jihadi propaganda Posted: 27 Nov 2014 04:26 AM PST PARIS (AP) — French authorities have detained two people suspected of selling jihadi DVDs and other propaganda, under a new anti-terrorism law aimed at stopping French extremists from joining fighters abroad.

Red Cross seeks $1.68 billion for 2015 Posted: 27 Nov 2014 03:49 AM PST GENEVA (AP) — The International Committee of the Red Cross is asking donors for $1.68 billion next year to help people caught up in armed conflicts, its biggest request ever and 25 percent larger than the current budget.

Pope visits Turkey amid Christian-Muslim tensions Posted: 27 Nov 2014 03:31 AM PST VATICAN CITY (AP) — When a pope last visited Turkey — Benedict XVI in 2006 — Muslim-Catholic tensions were so high that the Vatican added a stop at Istanbul's famed Blue Mosque at the last minute in hopes of showing Benedict's respect for Islam.

Greece tows migrant-packed ship to safety off Crete Posted: 27 Nov 2014 03:10 AM PST ATHENS (Reuters) - A Greek frigate has towed a disabled cargo ship packed with 700 migrants to safety just off the island of Crete on Thursday, in one of the biggest sea rescues mounted by the Mediterranean nation, coastguard officials said. The Kiribati-flagged MV Baris issued a distress call on Tuesday after developing engine problems 30 nautical miles (45 km) southeast of Crete. A Greek frigate dispatched to the scene spent over 24 hours fighting off strong winds and waves to tow the ship close to the southeastern port of Ierapetra, where boats had begun transferring migrants to the town. ...

How OPEC's Vienna Meeting is Playing Out So Far Posted: 27 Nov 2014 03:09 AM PST There's certainly grumbling among members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries as they meet at the cartel's headquarters in Vienna to discuss tumbling oil prices.

Iraq finance minister urges battle against graft in military Posted: 27 Nov 2014 02:31 AM PST By Michael Georgy BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's finance minister called for deep-rooted reforms to stamp out corruption in a military that collapsed in the face of an Islamic State advance, as he prepares to spend nearly a quarter of the 2015 budget on defense. Hoshiyar Zebari will push for about 23 percent of a proposed 2015 budget of $100 billion to be poured into defense and security when it is presented to Iraq's cabinet "very soon". Iraq has not published spending figures for this year, but according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Baghdad spent $7. ...

With incentives and brute force, IS subdues tribes Posted: 27 Nov 2014 01:28 AM PST BEIRUT (AP) — The Islamic State group is employing multiple tactics to subdue the Sunni Muslim tribes in Syria and Iraq under its rule, wooing some with gifts — everything from cars to feed for their animals — while brutally suppressing those that resist with mass killings.

US 'horrified' by Syrian regime raids, slams Assad Posted: 26 Nov 2014 09:59 PM PST The bombing Tuesday was the deadliest by President Bashar al-Assad's air force since Islamic State jihadists seized the city last year and declared it their capital. It was not clear how many Islamic States members were killed, but the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said more than half of the dead were civilians. The US State Department condemned the strikes, and said the regime had no value for human life. "We are horrified by the reports that the Assad regime's airstrikes yesterday in Raqa, Syria killed dozens of civilians and demolished residential areas," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a statement, released Wednesday.

Bulgaria charges radical imam with supporting Islamic State Posted: 26 Nov 2014 05:52 PM PST By Angel Krasimirov SOFIA (Reuters) - A Bulgarian imam and six others detained during a special operation by security forces earlier this week have been charged with supporting the ultra-radical militant group Islamic State, Bulgarian prosecutors said on Wednesday. Charges against Muslim prayer leader Ahmed Mussa, five men and one woman include propagating an anti-democratic ideology and incitement to war, both verbally and with videos and images, Deputy Chief Prosecutor Borislav Sarafov said. ...

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