Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Ooredoo Launches Series of Initiatives to Enable Arab Youth to Reach their Aspirations
• Manning's conviction, 35-year sentence upheld
• Militants close dam as Iraq violence kills 15
• Army general upholds Manning's prison sentence in WikiLeaks case
• U.S. lawmakers visit Afghanistan to press case for troops to stay
• Torture 'routinely' used in Syria, UN rights chief says
• Report: Glaxo bribed doctors in Poland
• Global military spending drops, led by US: SIPRI
• Hezbollah shifts tactics, narrative for Syria fight
• Ft. Hood Fallout: Mental Screening for Military Recruits
• GSK faces criminal bribery investigation in Poland
• Pace of presidential prep picks up
• ‘GOT’ Cast on That ‘Monster’ Twist

Ooredoo Launches Series of Initiatives to Enable Arab Youth to Reach their Aspirations Posted: 14 Apr 2014 02:33 PM PDT DOHA, Qatar, April 14, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Ooredoo's support for "human growth" has seen its companies roll-out a number of new initiatives in recent months, aiming to enable young people to fulfill their hopes and aspirations. One of Ooredoo's most successful programmes has been the Najja7ni ("Make Me Succeed") platform of mobile services in Tunisia, launched in collaboration with Silatech, which supports youth employability and financial inclusion in a country where young people face 30 percent unemployment.

Manning's conviction, 35-year sentence upheld Posted: 14 Apr 2014 01:28 PM PDT An Army general has upheld Private Chelsea Manning's conviction and 35-year prison sentence for giving reams of classified U.S. government information to the anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks, the Army said Monday.

Militants close dam as Iraq violence kills 15 Posted: 14 Apr 2014 12:51 PM PDT Militants have closed all gates of a Euphrates River dam they control in Iraq, blocking a major water source, a minister said on Monday, while violence killed 15 people. The latest unrest comes amid a protracted surge in nationwide bloodshed that has claimed more than 2,550 lives so far this year and sparked fears of Iraq slipping back into the all-out sectarian killings of 2006 and 2007. The unrest has been driven principally by widespread anger among the Sunni Arab minority over claims of mistreatment at the hands of the Shiite-led government and security forces, as well as by the civil war in neighbouring Syria. Militants have "completely closed the gates of the Fallujah dam since yesterday (Sunday) morning," Water Resources Minister Muhanad al-Saadi said in a statement.

Army general upholds Manning's prison sentence in WikiLeaks case Posted: 14 Apr 2014 12:46 PM PDT A U.S. Army general has denied clemency for Chelsea Manning and upheld the former soldier's 35-year prison sentence for providing secret files to WikiLeaks in the biggest breach of classified materials in U.S. history, the Army said Monday. Major General Jeffrey S. Buchanan's decision to uphold the findings of Manning's 2013 court-martial will automatically send the case to the Army Court of Criminal Appeals, an Army statement said. The soldier, formerly known as Bradley Manning, was working as an intelligence analyst in Baghdad in 2010 when she gave the pro-transparency site WikiLeaks 700,000 documents, videos, diplomatic cables and battlefield accounts.

U.S. lawmakers visit Afghanistan to press case for troops to stay Posted: 14 Apr 2014 10:32 AM PDT The Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, John Boehner, is leading a delegation of Republican lawmakers on a trip to Afghanistan to underscore their call for U.S. forces to remain there and also to review the country's presidential election, Boehner's office said on Monday. Boehner and seven other House Republicans met with U.S. troops, the U.S. ambassador and the commander of NATO-led forces in Afghanistan during the two-day visit that began on Sunday. The April 5 vote is meant to usher in Afghanistan's first democratic transfer of power as President Hamid Karzai steps down after 12 years and Western forces prepare to depart after more than a decade of war. Democratic President Barack Obama plans to withdraw most, or possibly all, U.S. forces from Afghanistan this year, winding down a conflict that began following the September 11, 2001, attacks.

Torture 'routinely' used in Syria, UN rights chief says Posted: 14 Apr 2014 06:53 AM PDT The UN's human rights chief on Monday condemned the "routine" use of torture in Syrian detention facilities, as a new report said victims were raped, beaten and had their teeth and toenails pulled out. Navi Pillay said torture was routinely used in government detention facilities as well as by some armed groups in Syria, where more than 150,000 people have been killed in a bloody civil war. "In armed conflict, torture constitutes a war crime," said the UN rights commissioner. "When it is used in a systematic or widespread manner, which is almost certainly the case in Syria, it also amounts to a crime against humanity."

Report: Glaxo bribed doctors in Poland Posted: 14 Apr 2014 06:02 AM PDT LONDON (AP) — The BBC reports that pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline is accused of bribing doctors to prescribe medicines in Poland.

Global military spending drops, led by US: SIPRI Posted: 14 Apr 2014 03:56 AM PDT World military expenditure fell in 2013 as the United States and other Western countries cut back, but spending in emerging economies grew, a Swedish think tank said on Monday. The 1.9 percent global decline followed a 0.4 percent drop in 2012, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said. "The increase in military spending in emerging and developing countries continues unabated," said Sam Perlo-Freeman, director of SIPRI's Military Expenditure Programme. The world spent $1.75 trillion (1.26 trillion euro) on the military in 2013, according to SIPRI's data, which accounted for inflation.

Hezbollah shifts tactics, narrative for Syria fight Posted: 14 Apr 2014 03:13 AM PDT Lebanon's Hezbollah movement is gaining new combat experience in Syria, shedding its guerrilla tactics to fight alongside an army, and shifting its narrative to explain the battle against "Sunni extremists". Its forces, who used their homeground advantage and methods such as underground tunnels against Israel's army in Lebanon, are now the targets of unconventional warfare on unfamiliar terrain in Syria. And the mothers of many of its fighters, who once sent their sons to battle the "Zionist enemy," now pray for them to be martyred fighting extremist Sunnis who make up part of Syria's opposition. The engagement in Syria has given the Shiite group a chance to initiate new recruits, experts say.

Ft. Hood Fallout: Mental Screening for Military Recruits Posted: 14 Apr 2014 03:00 AM PDT Military recruits might have a new hurdle to overcome before joining the armed forces: a mental health test. Lawmakers from both parties in Washington are coalescing around legislation that would require military recruits to undergo a mental screening, much like they have to pass medical and physical exams, before starting boot camp. Rep. Glenn Thompson (R-PA) introduced his measure on March 27, a week before the Fort Hood shooting left four soldiers dead and 16 injured. Since then, the bill's cosponsors nearly doubled, and the measure has the support of House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX), whose district includes Fort Hood.

GSK faces criminal bribery investigation in Poland Posted: 14 Apr 2014 02:03 AM PDT By Ben Hirschler and Adrian Krajewski LONDON/WARSAW (Reuters) - GlaxoSmithKline is facing a criminal investigation in Poland for allegedly bribing doctors to promote its lung drug Seretide, adding to problems for a company already accused of corruption in China and Iraq. Poland's Central Anti-Corruption Bureau, or CBA, said on Monday that 13 people had been charged in connection with the investigation launched by Polish prosecutors. Britain's biggest drugmaker said one employee had been disciplined following a company probe into the matter and it was co-operating with the Polish authorities. "The investigation found evidence of inappropriate communication in contravention of GSK policy by a single employee.

Pace of presidential prep picks up Posted: 14 Apr 2014 12:35 AM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — Just about everyone thinking about running for president is kicking it into gear now, slowpokes included.

‘GOT’ Cast on That ‘Monster’ Twist Posted: 13 Apr 2014 07:00 PM PDT Jaime Lannister, Arya Stark, Jon Snow, and more weigh in on the explosive episode. [WARNING: SPOILERS]

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