Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Activists: Syria conflict death toll hits 150,344
• Manning's new lawyer decries 35-year sentence
• Iraqi man wails at start of his US murder trial
• Iraqi man wails at start of his murder trial
• Radical Kenyan Muslim cleric shot dead in key port city
• 'The Unknown Known' looks for meaning in Rumsfeld's 'sea of words'
• Iraqi man goes on trial for California death first probed as hate crime
• Pentagon Buys Weapons Like It’s Fighting Two Wars in 2004
• Deadline brings high interest for health insurance
• Hardline Kenyan Muslim cleric shot dead
• Election posters fill Baghdad as campaign starts
• More than 150,000 killed in Syria conflict: NGO
• Parliamentary election campaign starts in Iraq
• Iraqi army battles militants in deadly Anbar siege
• Q&A: Morris on Rumsfeld doc, 'It's a horror movie'
• Extreme travel ideas for daredevils in 2014
• West stumbles as autocratic force trumps economics
• In secret recording, Dick Cheney blasts GOP isolationists, NSA critics, Obama
• Romania: US wants more troops at Black Sea base
• Apocalyptic prophecies drive both sides to Syrian battle for end of time
• Dubai security official says Qatar part of UAE
• Death toll in Syria's civil war above 150,000: monitor
• Iraq attacks kill 8 at start of election campaign
• Officials: Suicide attack kills 5 soldiers in Iraq
• Election posters adorn Baghdad as campaigning under way
• Al Qaeda says security steps show Saudi rulers controlled by U.S.
• AP sources: Health law sign-ups on track to hit 7M
• National Council Applauds Passage of Historic Excellence in Mental Health Act

Activists: Syria conflict death toll hits 150,344 Posted: 01 Apr 2014 04:59 PM PDT BEIRUT (AP) — The death toll in Syria's three-year conflict has exceeded 150,000, an activist group said Tuesday as fighting raged across the country, including an attack in the north that killed at least 31 people including 9 children.

Manning's new lawyer decries 35-year sentence Posted: 01 Apr 2014 04:08 PM PDT Army Private Chelsea Manning's 35-year sentence for leaking reams of classified information is out of proportion with the offenses for which she was convicted, the lawyer who will represent her in court-martial appeals said Tuesday.

Iraqi man wails at start of his US murder trial Posted: 01 Apr 2014 03:34 PM PDT EL CAJON, California (AP) — No weapon has been found two years after the fatal beating of a Muslim woman in her California home sparked fears that it was a hate crime, but prosecutors told jurors Tuesday that other evidence proves her Iraqi husband was the killer.

Iraqi man wails at start of his murder trial Posted: 01 Apr 2014 03:33 PM PDT EL CAJON, Calif. (AP) — No weapon has been found two years after the fatal beating of a Muslim woman in her California home sparked fears that it was a hate crime, but prosecutors told jurors Tuesday that other evidence proves her husband was the killer.

Radical Kenyan Muslim cleric shot dead in key port city Posted: 01 Apr 2014 02:54 PM PDT Mombasa (Kenya) (AFP) - A prominent hardline Muslim cleric in Kenya was shot dead in Mombasa on Tuesday, amid worsening religious tensions in the strategic port city and gateway to east Africa. Abubaker Shariff Ahmed, better known as Makaburi, was a vocal supporter of Osama bin Laden and had described last year's attack on the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi, which was claimed by Somalia's Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab rebels, as "100-percent justified".

'The Unknown Known' looks for meaning in Rumsfeld's 'sea of words' Posted: 01 Apr 2014 02:32 PM PDT By Eric Kelsey LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - After 11 days of interviews, Oscar-winning filmmaker Errol Morris felt he was hardly closer to understanding Donald Rumsfeld than when he first began to work on the documentary "The Unknown Known." The film, which gets its title from the former U.S. defense secretary's famous answer about "known knowns" and "known unknowns" to a reporter's straightforward question, offers the architect of the 2003 Iraq war and its troubled occupation the platform to explain his worldview and rationale. But Morris, best known for documentaries "The Thin Blue Line" and "The Fog of War," said he found that when given the chance, Rumsfeld was able to do little more than articulating shallow maxims and self-fulfilling generalizations, what Morris termed "principles you might find in a Chinese fortune cookie." "Absence of evidence is not an evidence of absence," the 81-year-old, who served as secretary of defense for Republican Presidents Gerald Ford and George W. Bush, repeats in the documentary.

Iraqi man goes on trial for California death first probed as hate crime Posted: 01 Apr 2014 02:31 PM PDT By Marty Graham SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - The trial of an Iraqi-American man got under way in San Diego on Tuesday on charges he beat his wife to death, a 2012 killing first investigated as a possible anti-Muslim hate crime but later said by prosecutors to be the result of domestic violence. Shaima Alawadi, a 32-year-old stay-at-home mother of five, was found in March 2012 bludgeoned in her home in the San Diego suburb of El Cajon, home to a large Arab-American population, and died of her injuries several days later. Iraqi government officials attended her funeral in Iraq. Police said at the time of Alawadi's slaying that they were considering hate as a motive, but in November arrested Alawadi's husband, Kassim Alhimidi.

Pentagon Buys Weapons Like It’s Fighting Two Wars in 2004 Posted: 01 Apr 2014 01:30 PM PDT That pretty much sums up the Defense Department's weapons procurement programs last year, judging by a recent report from the Government Accountability Office. The Pentagon reduced its number of major acquisition programs from 85 to 80 last year.

Deadline brings high interest for health insurance Posted: 01 Apr 2014 01:07 PM PDT SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — A blizzard, jammed phone lines and unreliable websites failed to stop throngs of procrastinating Americans from trying to sign up for health coverage by the midnight Monday deadline for President Barack Obama's signature domestic policy initiative.

Hardline Kenyan Muslim cleric shot dead Posted: 01 Apr 2014 01:01 PM PDT Mombasa (Kenya) (AFP) - A prominent hardline Muslim cleric in Kenya was shot dead in Mombasa on Tuesday, amid worsening religious tensions in the strategic port city and gateway to East Africa. Abubaker Shariff Ahmed, better known as Makaburi, was a vocal supporter of Osama bin Laden and defended last year's attack on the Westgate shopping mall claimed by Somalia's Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab rebels as "100 percent justified."

Election posters fill Baghdad as campaign starts Posted: 01 Apr 2014 12:22 PM PDT Baghdad (Iraq) (AFP) - Campaigning for Iraq's April 30 general election opened Tuesday, with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki bidding for a third term as his government grapples with the country's worst bloodshed in years. Separate sets of figures released on Tuesday by the UN mission to Iraq and the government differed markedly as to the scale of the bloodshed, but both pegged the violence at near its highest level in more than five years.

More than 150,000 killed in Syria conflict: NGO Posted: 01 Apr 2014 11:53 AM PDT The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it had documented the deaths of 150,344 people. The group said 37,781 members of the armed opposition had been killed, including jihadists from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and the Al-Qaeda affiliated Al-Nusra Front. On Tuesday itself, more than 50 people were killed in Damascus and Aleppo provinces, the Observatory said. The barrel bombs killed 12 children, six women and three men, said the Observatory, which has previously documented hundreds of casualties in similar air raids targeting the northern province.

Parliamentary election campaign starts in Iraq Posted: 01 Apr 2014 11:52 AM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — Campaigning officially kicked off Tuesday for Iraq's first parliamentary elections since the withdrawal of U.S. forces from the country more than two years ago, with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki seeking a new term at a time of escalating sectarian violence.

Iraqi army battles militants in deadly Anbar siege Posted: 01 Apr 2014 11:16 AM PDT RAMADI, Iraq (AP) — An Iraqi special forces patrol moves on foot past ruined homes on the outskirts of Ramadi, a city west of Baghdad where al-Qaida-inspired militants have held off the military for three months. As they head down an alleyway, shots from snipers ring out, followed by grenade blasts.

Q&A: Morris on Rumsfeld doc, 'It's a horror movie' Posted: 01 Apr 2014 09:45 AM PDT NEW YORK (AP) — Errol Morris spent more than 30 hours interviewing Donald Rumsfeld. He sifted through thousands of memos — "snowflakes," Rumsfeld called them — from the former secretary of defense and architect of the Iraq war.

Extreme travel ideas for daredevils in 2014 Posted: 01 Apr 2014 09:25 AM PDT Adrenaline junkies looking for their next travel adventure may want to consider consulting a new list of extreme destinations for 2014 that includes bungee jumping into the belly of an active volcano in Chile and touring a war zone. The adventure travel ideas proposed by Cheapflights aren't for the faint-hearted. But they may set many a thrillseeker's heart aflutter with trips that span Fiji, Mexico, Africa, Oman and Bolivia. Here's a selection of Cheapflights' adventure travel idea hotspots for 2014:

West stumbles as autocratic force trumps economics Posted: 01 Apr 2014 09:15 AM PDT A quarter-century after the fall of the Soviet Union, authoritarian rulers such as Vladimir Putin and Bashar al-Assad are showing they can and will defy international norms, suppress dissent and use military force. American policymakers are struggling with how to respond. "It's a big philosophical question about how to deal with a strong state with anti-Western and autocratic proclivities," said Michael McFaul, the most recent American ambassador to Moscow. "I would say on that score we are kind of confused as a country." Citing the sweeping unpopularity of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, American officials have embraced economic sanctions as their primary means of pressuring foreign governments.

In secret recording, Dick Cheney blasts GOP isolationists, NSA critics, Obama Posted: 01 Apr 2014 08:16 AM PDT In a speech in Las Vegas over the weekend, former Vice President Dick Cheney slammed the "isolationists" within the GOP, defended the National Security Agency spy program and, of course, criticized President Barack Obama.

Romania: US wants more troops at Black Sea base Posted: 01 Apr 2014 07:45 AM PDT BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romania's president says the United States has asked to increase the number of troops and aircraft it has stationed at a Black Sea air base in eastern Romania.

Apocalyptic prophecies drive both sides to Syrian battle for end of time Posted: 01 Apr 2014 07:39 AM PDT By Mariam Karouny BEIRUT (Reuters) - Conflict in Syria kills hundreds of thousands of people and spreads unrest across the Middle East. If the scenario sounds familiar to an anxious world watching Syria's devastating civil war, it resonates even more with Sunni and Shi'ite fighters on the frontlines - who believe it was all foretold in 7th Century prophecies. Among those many thousands of sayings, or hadith, are accounts which refer to the confrontation of two huge Islamic armies in Syria, a great battle near Damascus, and intervention from the north and west of the country. The power of those prophecies for many fighters on the ground means that the three-year-old conflict is more deeply rooted - and far tougher to resolve - than a simple power struggle between President Bashar al-Assad and his rebel foes.

Dubai security official says Qatar part of UAE Posted: 01 Apr 2014 07:32 AM PDT A top Dubai security official, General Dahi Khalfan, has claimed Qatar as forming part of the United Arab Emirates, adding a new dimension to a dispute with Doha. "Qatar is an integral part of the UAE," the outspoken Khalfan, a longtime critic of the Doha-backed Muslim Brotherhood, wrote on Twitter on Monday, demanding his country "reclaim" Qatar.

Death toll in Syria's civil war above 150,000: monitor Posted: 01 Apr 2014 05:26 AM PDT At least 150,000 people have been killed in Syria's three-year-old civil war, a third of them civilians, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Tuesday. The UK-based Observatory, which monitors violence in Syria through a network of activists and medical or security sources, said that real toll was likely to be significantly higher at around 220,000 deaths. Efforts to end the conflict by bringing together representatives of President Bashar al-Assad's government and the opposition have so far failed. The United Nations peace mediator for Syria said last week that talks were unlikely to resume soon.

Iraq attacks kill 8 at start of election campaign Posted: 01 Apr 2014 04:47 AM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — A series of attacks north of Baghdad killed eight soldiers on Tuesday as Iraq's election campaign officially kicked off ahead of the April 30 nationwide vote.

Officials: Suicide attack kills 5 soldiers in Iraq Posted: 01 Apr 2014 03:19 AM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi officials say a suicide car bomber has struck a military convoy north of Baghdad, killing five soldiers.

Election posters adorn Baghdad as campaigning under way Posted: 01 Apr 2014 01:03 AM PDT Campaigning for Iraq's April 30 general election opened on Tuesday, with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki bidding for a third term as his government grapples with the country's worst bloodshed in years. Posters have gone up across Baghdad and around the country as candidates vie for one of 328 parliamentary seats. No single party is expected to win an absolute majority and previous elections have seen lengthy periods of government formation. Though not officially confirmed, the vote appears unlikely to take place throughout the western desert province of Anbar, which has been wracked by violence since the beginning of the year, with militants holding control of an entire town on Baghdad's doorstep.

Al Qaeda says security steps show Saudi rulers controlled by U.S. Posted: 01 Apr 2014 12:49 AM PDT By William Maclean DUBAI (Reuters) - Al Qaeda's Yemen branch has mocked tough new counter-terrorism measures adopted by neighboring Saudi Arabia, saying they would not deter the Islamist group's fighters and that they proved the kingdom was in the pay of the United States. In an online statement, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) also said Riyadh's designation of the Muslim Brotherhood - a group whose political wings have contested elections in several countries - as a terrorist organization proved that secular authorities would never tolerate Islamist groups. AQAP, seen as one of the most dangerous al Qaeda branches after it plotted attacks on international airliners, is thought to have several hundred Saudi militants fighting alongside Yemeni counterparts against the government in Sanaa. On Feb 3, Saudi Arabia announced tougher punishments for Saudis seeking to join Islamist militant groups abroad and on March 7 the interior ministry designated a number of groups, including the Brotherhood, as terrorist organizations.

AP sources: Health law sign-ups on track to hit 7M Posted: 31 Mar 2014 10:06 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — Beating expectations, President Barack Obama's health care overhaul was on track to sign up more than 7 million Americans for health insurance on deadline day Monday, government officials told The Associated Press.

National Council Applauds Passage of Historic Excellence in Mental Health Act Posted: 31 Mar 2014 05:34 PM PDT WASHINGTON, March 31, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Senate today passed legislation that included $900 million to fund the bipartisan Excellence in Mental Health Act.  The legislation, which passed the U.S. House of Representatives last week as part of the Medicare SGR Repeal bill, establishes a two year demonstration program in eight states to offer a broad range of mental health and substance use treatment services, including 24-hour crisis psychiatric services, while setting new standards for provider organizations.    "This represents the largest single federal investment in community-based mental and substance use treatment in well over a generation," said Linda Rosenberg, President and CEO of the National Council for Behavioral Health.  "After decades of devastating funding cuts, this represents a turning point in terms of federal support of community mental health services.  As many as 240,000 people will be able to receive critical behavioral health services as a result of Excellence Act funding.

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