Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• $2.4 billion in aid pledged for war-ravaged Syria
• Iraqi army retakes western town seized by gunmen
• Nuclear Launch Control Officers Accused of Cheating on Proficiency Tests
• Trial of suspected Hariri assassins set to begin
• The SCOTUS 'Buffer Zone' Case Isn't Just About a Grandmotherly Abortion Protester
• The U.S. Has 'Proof of Life' of Captured American Soldier Bowe Bergdahl
• Syria aid pledges less than half of UN target
• NYC agrees $18 mn settlement with protesters
• Iraq attacks kill 73 as gunmen make gains in Anbar
• UN chief urges Syrian opposition to join talks
• Away from spotlight of Syria aid conference, a murkier fund drive
• Rand Paul's foreign policy pitch to Republicans: I'm no extremist
• Iraq draft budget intensifies Kurd oil export row
• Why does an unpopular Congress win re-election? Look in the mirror
• Marines probing validity of online Iraq war photos
• It's Really Hard to Get Rid of Dead Whales
• Veteran Virginia Democratic Rep. Moran to retire
• U.S. Marine Corps investigates photos showing bodies being burned
• Iran's FM discusses peace talks with Syria's Assad
• Damascus says West reaches out on security
• Car bomb kills at least 10 in northern Syria
• Lieberman: Obama lacks coherent anti-terror plan
• Is the West Warming to Assad?
• TMZ Leaks Photos of Marines Allegedly Burning Bodies in Iraq
• $2.4B pledged for war-ravaged Syria, UN says
• Car bomb kills 26 in north Syria, mostly rebels: NGO
• US probes photos of Marines burning corpses in Iraq
• Jihadist emir killed by Syria rebels, says monitor
• Violence kills 75 in Iraq, PM seeks world's support
• Car bomb kills 26 in northern Syria, activists blame al Qaeda
• AP PHOTOS: Iran's Basij force influences country
• U.N. says it abandons aid delivery after Syria insisted on dangerous route
• Iraq forces 'lose more ground' in Anbar
• Obama’s Numbers (January 2014 Update)
• Syria: What – and who – it will take to end the war
• Lebanese forces capture second leader of al Qaeda-linked group
• Syrian rebels kill Belgian commander linked to al Qaeda: activists
• Insight: Maliki consolidates power, fails to reconcile Iraqis
• Maliki calls for world's help as bombs rock Iraq
• Kuwait leads aid pledges for war-ravaged Syria

$2.4 billion in aid pledged for war-ravaged Syria Posted: 15 Jan 2014 03:09 PM PST KUWAIT CITY (AP) — Western nations and their Gulf Arab allies led the promises of support at a fundraising conference in Kuwait on Wednesday that generated pledges of at least $2.4 billion to alleviate the suffering of Syrians affected by the country's relentless civil war.

Iraqi army retakes western town seized by gunmen Posted: 15 Jan 2014 01:33 PM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi airstrikes pounded a town near Fallujah that had been seized by al-Qaida linked militants and commandos swept in Wednesday to clear the area, senior military officials said. It was a rare victory for government forces that have been struggling for nearly three weeks to regain control of the mainly Sunni area west of Baghdad.

Nuclear Launch Control Officers Accused of Cheating on Proficiency Tests Posted: 15 Jan 2014 01:21 PM PST An investigation into drug-use across six Air Force bases has uncovered a second, separate scandal — allegations of vast cheating operation involving people with launch control of nuclear missiles. The Associated Press reports on Wednesday that the military is investigating allegations that roughly 37 missile launch control officers at Malmstrom Air Force base in Montana, where the military houses nuclear-armed Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missiles, have been cheating on "routine tests the service members have to take to insure their job proficiency." CNN puts the number closer to 34 officers, and says all have been "decertified."  Yes, you should concerned military officers with access to nuclear missiles have been cheating on job proficiency tests. According to CNN, the officers were sharing exam answers over text messages that came to light during a drug investigation across the six bases, including Malmstrom, that revealed the second scandal at the Air Force base.

Trial of suspected Hariri assassins set to begin Posted: 15 Jan 2014 01:17 PM PST BEIRUT (AP) — The truck bomb assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri sent a sectarian tremor across the Middle East and set off years of upheaval in Lebanon, the consequences of which are still felt across the turbulent region.

The SCOTUS 'Buffer Zone' Case Isn't Just About a Grandmotherly Abortion Protester Posted: 15 Jan 2014 01:15 PM PST On Wednesday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for its first case on abortion clinic "buffer zones" since 2000. The case challenges a 2007 Massachusetts law imposing a 35-foot buffer zone around abortion-providing women's clinics in the state. And although the law was put in place as a response to aggressive harassment of patients and staff at some clinics, the representative protester for those challenging the law is Eleanor McCullen, a polite, "grandmotherly," 77-year-old activist. "Buffer zone" laws — which provide a "bubble" or buffer around clinic entrances or patients — are not unique to Massachusetts, nor are they unique to abortion-providing clinics.

The U.S. Has 'Proof of Life' of Captured American Soldier Bowe Bergdahl Posted: 15 Jan 2014 12:41 PM PST Bowe Bergdahl, the only remaining captive American prisoner of war from Iraq and Afghanistan, is alive. The U.S. received a recent "proof of life" video of the U.S. Army sergeant last week at a Middle Eastern embassy, NBC News reported on Wednesday. This is the first video proof of the soldier's condition since February of 2011.  The video reportedly "shows a frail, shaky Bergdahl." The captured soldier references the early December death of Nelson Mandela, proving that it cannot be very old. According to CNN, the video also references the date of December 14, 2013.

Syria aid pledges less than half of UN target Posted: 15 Jan 2014 12:36 PM PST Donor governments pledged Wednesday less than half the money the United Nations had been seeking to alleviate a worsening crisis in Syria, where it says nearly half the population is in urgent need. The donors' conference in Kuwait came as preparations intensified for a UN-led peace conference in Switzerland next week that the main exiled opposition alliance has yet to commit to attend. UN chief Ban Ki-moon had issued an urgent appeal to donor governments for assistance for the millions of Syrians driven from their homes by a conflict that has killed more than 130,000 people and displaced millions. "Half of the total population of Syrian people, nearly 9.3 million individuals, urgently need humanitarian aid," Ban said.

NYC agrees $18 mn settlement with protesters Posted: 15 Jan 2014 12:13 PM PST New York City agreed Wednesday to pay $18 million to settle a civil rights claim from 1,800 people who were detained during mass demonstrations against the 2004 Republican party convention. Police conducted massive sweeps ahead of the event at which George W. Bush was nominated for a second term as US president a year after starting the controversial war in Iraq. The New York Police Department has always vigorously defended its action, maintaining that officers at all times acted in keeping with the constitution, but the protesters said their rights were violated.

Iraq attacks kill 73 as gunmen make gains in Anbar Posted: 15 Jan 2014 12:12 PM PST A wave of attacks in Iraq, including car bombs in Baghdad, killed 73 people on Wednesday as militants took more territory from security forces in crisis-hit Anbar province. The twin setbacks for authorities, grappling with Iraq's worst period of unrest since the country emerged from a sectarian war that killed tens of thousands, come just months before a parliamentary election. UN chief Ban Ki-moon and other diplomats have urged Iraq's leaders to seek political reconciliation to resolve nationwide violence and the standoff in Anbar. But Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has ruled out dialogue with militants as his forces have launched wide-ranging security operations.

UN chief urges Syrian opposition to join talks Posted: 15 Jan 2014 12:12 PM PST KUWAIT CITY (AP) — The U.N. secretary-general on Wednesday urged Syria's Western-backed but fragmented opposition to attend upcoming peace talks, as President Bashar Assad met with regional ally Iran's top diplomat ahead of the negotiations next week aimed at finding a way out of the country's bloody three-year conflict.

Away from spotlight of Syria aid conference, a murkier fund drive Posted: 15 Jan 2014 11:53 AM PST As global leaders gathered at the glitzy Bayan Palace in Kuwait City today to pledge support for the estimated 11.6 million Syrian victims of the civil war, a much quieter fundraising effort continues behind the scenes: private funding for Syrian rebels, with some of the donations reaching the hands of extremist groups. "The funders that you have remaining really do have a clear ideological agenda for the conflict," says Elizabeth Dickinson, author of the report, "and it's a danger not only for the direction that Syria will take, but frankly for the future of the entire region." (Editor's note: Elizabeth Dickinson is a former Monitor contributor.) In total, it is estimated that hundreds of millions of dollars have been funneled through Kuwait into Syria, and evidence suggests some has gone to support rival al-Qaeda affiliates Jabhat al-Nusra and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS). Both groups have used brutal tactics in fighting not only the Syrian regime forces, but also more moderate Syrian rebel groups and civilians that do not follow the groups' strict interpretation of Islam.

Rand Paul's foreign policy pitch to Republicans: I'm no extremist Posted: 15 Jan 2014 11:34 AM PST As Rand Paul tests the 2016 presidential waters, he has been busy making the case to mainstream Republican economic and foreign policy circles that he is not the libertarian extremist that even some in his own party have pegged him to be. Tuesday night he told an audience assembled to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the prestigious realist organization, the Center for the National Interest, that he is not the "isolationist" that some detractors would like to label him as. Rather, the junior senator who filibustered for 13 hours over the Obama administration's use of drones against terrorists in foreign places said, "Our foreign policy and national security policy are too belligerent." A better foreign policy, Senator Paul said, is one grounded in "the idea that negotiation can improve our world" – and he cited how he believes that intensified relations with China can lead to progress on North Korea, and how stronger engagement with Russia can yield results on Syria.

Iraq draft budget intensifies Kurd oil export row Posted: 15 Jan 2014 11:05 AM PST Iraqi Kurdish ministers walked out of a cabinet session on Wednesday in protest at the country's draft 2014 budget, further complicating a feud over the autonomous region's plans to export crude via a new pipeline to Turkey. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) said last week that crude had begun to flow through the pipeline, and exports were on track to start at the end of January, inviting bidders to register with the Kurdistan Oil Marketing Organisation (KOMO). Baghdad rejected that as a violation of the constitution and on Wednesday reiterated that Iraq's State Oil Marketing Organisation (SOMO) had exclusive rights to sell crude from Kurdistan and the rest of the country. The draft budget requires the Kurds to export 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) -- well above the region's current export capacity -- and says Baghdad will deduct any shortfall from the 17 percent share of state revenues to which they are entitled.

Why does an unpopular Congress win re-election? Look in the mirror Posted: 15 Jan 2014 10:52 AM PST Just 13 percent of Americans, according to a Gallup poll released on Tuesday, pat Congress on the back and say, "Good job!" It'll thus be disgruntling for many voters to see most of the 435 U.S. House of Representatives members celebrate their re-election come November. Indeed, historical House re-election rates hover around 90 percent, not dropping below 85 percent since at least 1964.

Marines probing validity of online Iraq war photos Posted: 15 Jan 2014 10:50 AM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — The Marine Corps says it is attempting to determine the authenticity of photos published by TMZ.com that the entertainment website says show Marines appearing to burn bodies of dead Iraqi insurgents in Fallujah in 2004.

It's Really Hard to Get Rid of Dead Whales Posted: 15 Jan 2014 10:26 AM PST The images from Scotland underlined the problems beach areas have with dead whales: How the heck should you get rid of them? The most (in)famous idea for removal came from Oregon in 1970, when "experts" stuck dynamite into a beached whale, hoping an explosion would completely disintegrate the body. As the news man covering the scene says, "The blast blasted blubber beyond all believable bounds." A car well behind the cameras was smashed by a flying piece of whale, and  "everyone on the scene was covered with small particles of dead whale." Let's take this idea out of the possible solutions, then.

Veteran Virginia Democratic Rep. Moran to retire Posted: 15 Jan 2014 10:09 AM PST McLEAN, Va. (AP) — Veteran Rep. Jim Moran, a pugnacious Democrat who made headlines as an early, outspoken opponent of the Iraq War and for saying during the Monica Lewinsky scandal that he might like to punch Bill Clinton in the nose, announced Wednesday that he will retire from Congress after 12 terms representing northern Virginia.

U.S. Marine Corps investigates photos showing bodies being burned Posted: 15 Jan 2014 10:01 AM PST The Marine Corps said on Wednesday it was investigating a series of photos depicting what appeared to be a Marine pouring flammable liquid on dead bodies in an unidentified compound and setting them ablaze. The photos were sent to the Defense Department last week by the entertainment Web site TMZ, which said it had been told the pictures were taken in Fallujah, Iraq, in 2004 and the bodies were those of slain insurgents, a U.S. defense official said. The official said the investigation was complicated by the fact the face of at least one of the people depicted had been blurred to obscure his identity. "We are currently investigating the veracity of the photographs, circumstances surrounding the photographs, and if possible, the identity of the service members involved," Marine Captain Richard Ulsh said in a statement.

Iran's FM discusses peace talks with Syria's Assad Posted: 15 Jan 2014 09:59 AM PST DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Syria's president and Iran's foreign minister on Wednesday discussed next week's United Nations conference that aims to resolve Syria's three-year conflict, calling on regional nations to "fight terrorism."

Damascus says West reaches out on security Posted: 15 Jan 2014 09:44 AM PST Some Western nations opposed to President Bashar al-Assad have discussed security cooperation with his government, Syria said on Wednesday, a move which if true would suggest a rise in Western concerns about foreign militants in rebel ranks. The top U.S. and French diplomats both said they were personally unaware of such contacts but did not go so far as to deny that any had taken place. Syria's Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad said several Western intelligence services had visited Damascus for discussions. His comments were broadcast a day after the Wall Street Journal reported that French and Spanish spy services had made contact with Assad's government.

Car bomb kills at least 10 in northern Syria Posted: 15 Jan 2014 09:23 AM PST DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Activists are reporting that a car bomb has killed at least 10 people and wounded dozens in a northern Syrian town near the Turkish border.

Lieberman: Obama lacks coherent anti-terror plan Posted: 15 Jan 2014 09:20 AM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Sen. Joe Lieberman told a House panel Wednesday that President Barack Obama has "no coherent" anti-terrorism strategy in embattled countries where al-Qaida is gaining new influence, and that's endangering the United States.

Is the West Warming to Assad? Posted: 15 Jan 2014 09:15 AM PST Soon after the Syrian civil war began nearly three years ago, Western leaders called for President Bashar al-Assad to step down, siding with the people in a popular uprising against a despotic leader. In August of 2011, President Obama stated, "We have consistently said that President Assad must lead a democratic transition or get out of the way. For the sake of the Syrian people, the time has come for President Assad to step aside." In July 2012, British PM David Cameron demanded a political transition, saying:  The sooner that happens, the sooner the people of Syria can be freed from the tyranny under which they are currently suffering.

TMZ Leaks Photos of Marines Allegedly Burning Bodies in Iraq Posted: 15 Jan 2014 09:09 AM PST TMZ obtained a trove of photos that allegedly show U.S. Marines posing next to and burning dead bodies of insurgents in Fallujah, Iraq, in 2004. TMZ leaked 9 of 41 photos that appear to show Marines in Iraq pouring gasoline and then burning the dead bodies of Iraqis. An investigation into the photos has now been opened by the Marine Corps to see whether punishment is necessary.  "We have no details beyond the photos themselves," Pentagon spokesperson Commander Bill Speaks told The Wire over the phone, contradicting slightly what TMZ reported. The Defense Department plans to investigate the veracity of the photos and possibly the identify the soldiers involved. Burning bodies directly violates the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Crimes against the code can still be prosecuted, even all these years later.

$2.4B pledged for war-ravaged Syria, UN says Posted: 15 Jan 2014 09:08 AM PST KUWAIT CITY (AP) — A fundraising conference in Kuwait generated at least $2.4 billion in pledges Wednesday from international donors to alleviate the suffering of Syrians affected by their country's civil war, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said.

Car bomb kills 26 in north Syria, mostly rebels: NGO Posted: 15 Jan 2014 09:06 AM PST A car bomb in northern Syria killed at least 26 people on Wednesday, most of them rebels, a monitoring group said. The bomb struck the Aleppo province town of Jarablos, scene of fierce fighting in recent days between the jihadist Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, and rival rebels. Among the dead were three civilians, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP it was likely the incident "was a suicide attack staged by ISIL," adding that it came after jihadists lost turf to rival rebels in the town.

US probes photos of Marines burning corpses in Iraq Posted: 15 Jan 2014 08:49 AM PST The US Marine Corps has launched an investigation into photos released Wednesday that purport to show troops burning corpses in Fallujah, Iraq, a spokesman said. The probe was focused initially on verifying if the images were genuine, after the gossip website TMZ, known for its coverage of celebrities, posted eight grisly photos online. "We are conducting an investigation into it right now," Captain Tyler Balzer told AFP. The TMZ site said it had 41 photos and were told the images were taken in Fallujah, the scene of heavy fighting by Marines nearly ten years ago and where Al-Qaeda-linked militants recently took back control.

Jihadist emir killed by Syria rebels, says monitor Posted: 15 Jan 2014 08:45 AM PST Syrian rebels fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in the north of the country on Wednesday killed a jihadist leader in the town of Saraqeb, a watchdog said. Meanwhile in jihadist-held Raqa, further east, ISIL set free dozens of rebels it had captured in battles over the past few days, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. "ISIL's emir in Saraqeb (Idlib province) Abul Baraa was shot dead this morning," said Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Britain-based monitoring group. Abul Baraa, a Belgian jihadist of Arab origin, last week warned Syrian rebels to halt an anti-ISIL offensive they launched early January or face suicide attacks against their positions.

Violence kills 75 in Iraq, PM seeks world's support Posted: 15 Jan 2014 08:42 AM PST By Alistair Lyon BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Bomb attacks and shootings killed at least 75 people in Iraq on Wednesday, police and hospital sources said, making it one of the bloodiest days in months. In the deadliest incident, a bomb blew up in a funeral tent where mourners were marking the death two days ago of a Sunni Muslim pro-government militiaman, police said. In northwestern Iraq, assailants detonated roadside bombs near a bridge in Ain al-Jahash, 60 km (37 miles) south of Mosul as an army patrol was crossing it. Gunmen killed seven truck drivers, kidnapped two and set three trucks ablaze in the mainly Shi'ite district of Maamil in Baghdad's eastern outskirts, police said.

Car bomb kills 26 in northern Syria, activists blame al Qaeda Posted: 15 Jan 2014 08:04 AM PST BEIRUT (Reuters) - A car bomb planted by rebels linked to al Qaeda killed at least 26 people in Syria's northern city of Jarablus on Wednesday, most of them rival opposition fighters, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Syria's rebel-held northern and eastern territories are mired in the worst episode of internecine clashes since the nearly 3-year-old uprising began, with hundreds killed in over a week of fighting between an alliance of rebel groups and an al Qaeda affiliated group known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). ...

AP PHOTOS: Iran's Basij force influences country Posted: 15 Jan 2014 07:48 AM PST TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — With a presence in nearly every city and town across Iran, the paramilitary Basij volunteer corps has an ever-increasing influence on life in the Islamic Republic.

U.N. says it abandons aid delivery after Syria insisted on dangerous route Posted: 15 Jan 2014 07:37 AM PST By Oliver Holmes BEIRUT (Reuters) - Shooting forced the United Nations to abort a delivery of food and polio vaccines to a besieged area of Damascus after the Syrian government insisted it use a dangerous route, a U.N. spokesman said. Aid workers in Syria have accused authorities of hampering deliveries to rebel-controlled areas and threatening groups with expulsion if they try to avoid bureaucratic obstacles to help people trapped in an almost three-year-old civil war. Syria blames rebel attacks for aid delays. The U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) said Damascus had authorized a six-truck convoy to deliver food for 6,000 people, 10,000 doses of polio vaccine and medical supplies to the Yarmouk Palestinian district where 15 people are known to have died of malnutrition and 18,000 are trapped by fighting.

Iraq forces 'lose more ground' in Anbar Posted: 15 Jan 2014 07:17 AM PST Ramadi (Iraq) (AFP) - Iraqi forces lost more ground in crisis-hit Anbar province on Wednesday as Sunni gunmen, including those linked to Al-Qaeda, overran two key areas when police abandoned their posts, officials said. The losses mark a second day of setbacks for Baghdad as it seeks to retake territory on the capital's doorstep from militants, who hold all of the former insurgent bastion of Fallujah and parts of the nearby Anbar provincial capital Ramadi. The latest unrest comes amid a deadly, weeks-long crisis in the province, a mostly desert region in western Iraq bordering conflict-ravaged Syria, ahead of national parliamentary polls on April 30. Diplomats, including UN chief Ban Ki-moon, have urged Baghdad to pursue political reconciliation to resolve the standoff and a protracted surge in nationwide violence, but Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has ruled out dialogue with militants.

Obama’s Numbers (January 2014 Update) Posted: 15 Jan 2014 07:10 AM PST Latest statistics show stagnant wages, persistent long-term joblessness, soaring profits and stock prices, and moderating health care spending.

Syria: What – and who – it will take to end the war Posted: 15 Jan 2014 07:05 AM PST President Obama declared more than two years ago that "Assad must go," but the hard reality today is that the regime of Bashar al-Assad remains in power and has gained ground militarily. The war in Syria is also endangering international security.

Lebanese forces capture second leader of al Qaeda-linked group Posted: 15 Jan 2014 07:01 AM PST Lebanese forces captured another leader of an al Qaeda-linked militant group in a raid on his hideout in central Lebanon on Wednesday, the military said, weeks after they detained the unit's commander. Jamal Daftardar, a Lebanese citizen, was one of the leading figures in the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, a group operating in Lebanon which claimed responsibility for a bombing on the Iranian embassy in November which killed at least 23. The arrest comes three weeks after security forces captured the group's Saudi leader, Majid bin Muhammad al-Majid. Majid died in custody at a military hospital early in January from kidney failure, Lebanese security sources said.

Syrian rebels kill Belgian commander linked to al Qaeda: activists Posted: 15 Jan 2014 07:00 AM PST A Belgian commander of al Qaeda-linked forces in Syria was killed in fierce clashes between rival rebel groups for the northern town of Saraqeb on Wednesday, activists said. Supporters of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant however denied reports that the local Saraqeb "emir", known as Abu Baraa al-Jazairi, had been killed. An array of Syrian rebel groups, including the large alliance known as the Islamic Front, have been trying to push out ISIL, a small but powerful affiliate of al Qaeda with a core of foreign fighters.

Insight: Maliki consolidates power, fails to reconcile Iraqis Posted: 15 Jan 2014 06:10 AM PST By Alistair Lyon and Yara Bayoumy BAGHDAD/DUBAI (Reuters) - Nuri al-Maliki's political skills have kept him at the pinnacle of power in Iraq since 2006, but the Shi'ite Muslim leader has yet to heal the wounds of a country traumatized by tyranny, occupation and communal strife. With al Qaeda again rampant, violence has hit a five-year high, minority Sunnis are embittered and Kurds are restive. And despite plentiful oil income, jobs and basic services remain scarce, a decade after U.S.-led forces toppled Saddam Hussein. Yet in April voters may well hand a third term to Maliki - a hardbitten political operator who emerged from obscurity to become prime minister nearly eight years ago - or at least give him a headstart in post-election wrangling for the job.

Maliki calls for world's help as bombs rock Iraq Posted: 15 Jan 2014 06:03 AM PST Prime Minister Nour al-Maliki reiterated his call for international support to stem the rising violence in Iraq after bombings across the country killed at least 40. Although the United Nations and US have expressed concern about the growing insecurity, leaders have been firm that it is the Iraqis' job to bring calm. Violence in Iraq has been on the rise, with the 2013 death toll reaching levels not seen since the height of the Iraq civil war in 2006-07. According to the BBC, nearly 8,000 civilians and just over 1,000 security forces were killed in Iraq last year, with 759 deaths tallied so far this year.

Kuwait leads aid pledges for war-ravaged Syria Posted: 15 Jan 2014 05:19 AM PST KUWAIT CITY (AP) — Kuwait, the United States and other donor nations have so far promised more than $1.2 billion of new funding to alleviate the suffering of Syrians affected by their country's civil war at the start of an international fundraising conference Wednesday that aid officials hope will help cover billions of dollars needed this year.

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