| As Libya teeters near chaos, U.S. keeps hands-off policy Posted: 24 Jun 2014 04:52 PM PDT  By Missy Ryan and Arshad Mohammed WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Among all countries swept by the Arab Spring uprisings, few today are as dysfunctional as Libya. Weapons looted from arsenals of ousted dictator Muammar Gaddafi help fuel the bloody conflict in Syria. As Libya's problems deepen, U.S. officials suggest it's largely up to Libya to resolve them, underscoring a "hands off" approach that carries risks for the region and the West. Some experts fear some militias or other groups could reject the results of the vote, worsening infighting and potentially deepening the chaos that threatens to transform the North African oil producer into a transit point for fighters heading to conflicts in Egypt, Syria or sub-Saharan countries like Mali.
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| U.S. forces flow into Baghdad to assess Iraq troops Posted: 24 Jun 2014 04:10 PM PDT The Pentagon says nearly half of the roughly 300 advisers and special operations forces expected to go to Iraq are now in Baghdad, and have begun to assess the Iraqi forces and the fight against Sunni militants. Another four teams of special forces will arrive in days, bringing the total to almost 200. |
| Kerry arrives for NATO talks on Ukraine, Iraq Posted: 24 Jun 2014 04:05 PM PDT  US Secretary of State John Kerry huddled with European allies ahead of key NATO talks Wednesday, after a whirlwind visit to Iraq aimed at shoring up Iraqi unity. Shortly after flying in on a US military plane from northern Iraq, Kerry met late Tuesday with EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton as well as other European partners and "discussed the grave security situation in Iraq." They also talked about "efforts to de-escalate tensions in Ukraine and efforts to support the political process in Libya," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said. With crises boiling over in Ukraine and Syria, the Sunni jihadist offensive in northern Iraq has added new urgency to an already packed NATO agenda, with ministers also due to discuss efforts to wind down the war in Afghanistan.
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| Kerry urges Kurds to save Iraq from collapse Posted: 24 Jun 2014 03:45 PM PDT  By Lesley Wroughton ARBIL Iraq (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry urged leaders of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region on Tuesday to stand with Baghdad in the face of a Sunni insurgent onslaught that threatens to dismember the country. Kerry flew to the Kurdish region on a trip through the Middle East to rescue Iraq following a lightning advance by the Sunni fighters led by jihadis of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant. U.S. officials believe that persuading the Kurds to stick with the political process in Baghdad is vital to keep Iraq from splitting apart. "If they decide to withdraw from the Baghdad political process, it will accelerate a lot of the negative trends," said a senior State Department official who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity.
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| Iraqi prime minister's focus is to defend Baghdad Posted: 24 Jun 2014 03:22 PM PDT  BAGHDAD (AP) — Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is ready to concede, at least temporarily, the loss of much of Iraq to Sunni insurgents and is instead deploying the military's best-trained and equipped troops to defend Baghdad, Iraqi officials told The Associated Press Tuesday.
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| White House raps Republicans over ambassadorial logjam Posted: 24 Jun 2014 03:11 PM PDT  The White House blamed Senate Republicans Tuesday for putting US national security at risk by thwarting the swift confirmation of a long list of President Barack Obama's ambassador picks -- some to hot-spot nations. National Security Advisor Susan Rice said that 48 of Obama's nominations for ambassador overseas were pending and 26 were already on the Senate's executive calendar and eligible for full confirmation by the chamber. Rice also said that 16 of the 26 were foreign service officers -- in a preemptive strike at administration critics who have complained some ambassadorial picks are Obama cronies and fundraisers who have proven themselves a political liability in several botched confirmation hearings. "I am focused every day on keeping our country secure and our citizens –- at home and abroad –- safe," said Rice in a White House blog post.
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| Russia wants UN to prevent terrorists selling oil Posted: 24 Jun 2014 03:09 PM PDT UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Russia's U.N. ambassador said Tuesday he wants the U.N. Security Council to prevent terrorists from selling Iraqi and Syrian oil to finance their illegal activities. |
| World Cup Takes a Bite Out of Wimbledon Ticket Sales Posted: 24 Jun 2014 03:00 PM PDT  The Wimbledon Championships are currently underway. Wimbeledon ticket sales have been hit hard by the World Cup. If you were lucky enough to have purchased directly from the source, World Cup seats for the opening match were $495 while Wimbledon's first day was just over $81. The finals match at the World Cup is $990, where as Wimbledon is between $210 and $250.
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| Iraqi PM's focus, for now, is to defend Baghdad Posted: 24 Jun 2014 02:56 PM PDT  BAGHDAD (AP) — Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is ready to concede, at least temporarily, the loss of much of Iraq to Sunni insurgents and is instead deploying the military's best-trained and equipped troops to defend Baghdad, Iraqi officials told The Associated Press Tuesday.
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| U.S. 2015 war-funding request due to go to Congress soon: official Posted: 24 Jun 2014 02:43 PM PDT Pentagon Comptroller Robert Hale said on Tuesday the Obama administration would send its 2015 funding request for the Afghanistan war to Congress "quite soon" but he added it was unlikely to include proposals for possible operations in Iraq. Hale, who leaves office soon after five years as the Pentagon's top financial officer, said until President Barack Obama decides whether to take additional steps in Iraq, it is premature to estimate the potential costs. |
| U.S. begins deploying military assessment teams in Iraq: Pentagon Posted: 24 Jun 2014 02:28 PM PDT By David Alexander WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. military began deploying assessment teams in Baghdad on Tuesday to evaluate the state of Iraqi security forces and decide how to help them counter an Islamist insurgency that has overrun part of the country, the Pentagon said. Rear Admiral John Kirby, the Pentagon press secretary, said about 40 special operations personnel already in the country and assigned to the U.S. Embassy's Office of Security Cooperation had been deployed as part of the first two assessment teams. About 90 additional troops arrived in Iraq to begin helping establish a Joint Operations Center in Baghdad with Iraqi forces. |
| TSX ends sharply lower as resources lead drop from six-year high Posted: 24 Jun 2014 02:23 PM PDT  Canada's main stock index fell hard from near-record levels on Tuesday as investors nervous about the pace of the index's recent fast rise pared positions, particularly in resources stocks. Oil and gold prices initially pushed higher, with oil driven by concerns over fighting in Iraq, but both retreated late in the session. In the absence of any new catalysts, the market might be inclined to drift lower," said Elvis Picardo, strategist and vice president of research at Global Securities in Vancouver. The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index .GSPTSE ended the session down 143.26 points, or 0.95 percent, at 14,962.37.
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| Wall Street retreats on Iraq worries as data boost fades Posted: 24 Jun 2014 02:17 PM PDT  By Chuck Mikolajczak NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell on Tuesday as early enthusiasm from economic data faded and concerns about the violence in Iraq gave investors a reason to sell and book some profits, driving the Dow to its biggest drop in over a month. The market's gains evaporated in the afternoon on concerns about an escalation of the conflict in Iraq. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry urged leaders of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region on Tuesday to stand with Baghdad in the face of a Sunni insurgent onslaught that threatens to destroy the country. "The Iraq thing is probably getting more focus than anything else," said Stephen Massocca, managing director at Wedbush Equity Management LLC in San Francisco.
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| US military advisers begin 'limited' mission in Iraq Posted: 24 Jun 2014 02:12 PM PDT  The first of up to 300 US military advisers began their mission in Baghdad Tuesday to help the Iraqi army, but the Pentagon said the American troops were not taking on a combat role. The primary task of the advisers was to evaluate the state of the Iraqi forces and not to turn the tide against militants from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), which have swept across western and northern Iraq, the Pentagon's press secretary said. "This isn't about rushing to the rescue," Rear Admiral John Kirby told reporters. "These teams will assess the cohesiveness and readiness of Iraqi security forces ...and examine the most effective and efficient way to introduce follow-on advisers," Kirby said.
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| Rebels in Ukraine Break Ceasefire, Military Helicopter Shot Down Posted: 24 Jun 2014 01:45 PM PDT  Pro-Russian separatists in Eastern Ukraine have violated the ceasefire, according to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. The ceasefire began June 20th and was meant to last until June 27th. The ceasefire is part of Poroshenko's peace plan. "Unfortunately there were violations of the ceasefire from the other side. Ukrainian government forces say they have held true to the ceasefire, not participating in any military actions since the 20th.
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| Stocks end lower as traders sell blue chips Posted: 24 Jun 2014 01:37 PM PDT  NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market had its biggest decline in two weeks Tuesday, led by a sell-off in blue-chip bank and energy stocks. Homebuilders rose after the government reported sales of new homes rose in May to the highest level in six years.
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| Top Green Beret Officer Forced to Resign Over Affair With WaPo Reporter Posted: 24 Jun 2014 01:16 PM PDT  Jim Gant, Once Praised as American Hero of Afghan War, Labeled a 'Disgrace' to the Military
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| UN Warns That Growing $213 Billion Poaching Industry Funds Armed Conflicts Posted: 24 Jun 2014 01:06 PM PDT  The illegal trade of global wildlife and natural resources is worth nearly $213 billion a year and is helping fund armed conflict, according to a new report from the United Nations and Interpol. Achim Steiner, head of the United Nations Environment Program, told Reuters that environmental crime is "a financing machine" for militias, extremist groups, and armed conflict. According to The Environment Crime Crisis report: The Sudanese Janjaweed and the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) poach elephants throughout Central Africa and neighboring countries.
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| Who Really Murdered NYPD Cop in Sicily? Posted: 24 Jun 2014 12:30 PM PDT  No, despite the headlines, we still don't know who gunned down the legendary NYPD detective in Sicily 105 years ago.
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| First US military advisers begin work in Iraq Posted: 24 Jun 2014 12:27 PM PDT  The first teams of up to 300 US military advisers have begun their mission in Baghdad to assist the Iraqi army in its fight against Sunni extremists, the Pentagon said Tuesday. Admiral John Kirby told reporters that "we have begun to deploy initial assessment teams" and two teams of about 40 troops "have started their new mission." "These teams will assess the cohesiveness and readiness of Iraqi security forces ...and examine the most effective and efficient way to introduce follow-on advisers." The first two teams were drawn from the US embassy in Iraq, and an additional 90 troops have arrived to set up a joint operations center in Baghdad.
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| British, Saudi defence chiefs discuss Iraq crisis Posted: 24 Jun 2014 12:26 PM PDT  Saudi Crown Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz and visiting British Defence Secretary Philip Hammond discussed Tuesday the latest turmoil in Iraq, which borders the oil rich kingdom, state news agency SPA reported. Hammond's stop in Jeddah is the first on a Gulf tour that will also take him to the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Kuwait, amid uncertainty triggered by the Iraqi crisis. Prince Salman holds the Saudi defence portfolio, and the two men discussed "cooperation between the two countries and ways to strengthen it, in addition to regional and international developments," SPA said. The tour provides an "occasion to discuss the need to find a political solution for the crisis in Iraq," a diplomat in Saudi Arabia said.
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| The Single Mom Dilemma—Low Pay, High Pressure Posted: 24 Jun 2014 12:24 PM PDT  To Bene't Holmes, the White House Summit on Working Families was personal, not just another event designed by President Obama and his fellow Democrats to draw a policy or political contrast with Republicans this election year. Holmes makes $15,000 per year working full-time for Walmart in Chicago. "It's very hard to make ends meet," said Holmes. The president held the event Monday to advance his case that more family-friendly workplace flexibility is key to economic growth in 21st Century.
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| China's gift causes big trouble for tiny Tonga Posted: 24 Jun 2014 12:23 PM PDT  NUKU'ALOFA, Tonga (AP) — It's almost 10 a.m., but the barista at this tiny Pacific kingdom's domestic air terminal has yet to make a single cup of coffee.
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| Has Afghan election fraud controversy been defused? Posted: 24 Jun 2014 12:06 PM PDT Afghan presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah – whose allegations of mass fraud have injected uncertainty into a close-fought election – has met with the Afghan electoral commission, the United Nations said today, in what's seen as a bid to diffuse tension. The Monday night meeting "allowed for an exchange of views," between Mr. Abdullah and the Independent Election Commission, according to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan. Last week Abdullah said he wouldn't cooperate with the election commission, raising concern over the country's first democratic transition of power. On Monday, Chief Electoral Officer Ziaulhaq Amarkhil resigned after the Abdullah campaign released unverified tapes of the election chief and his aides allegedly arranging to rig the vote against Abdullah. |
| Sudanese Woman Sentenced to Death for Apostasy Reportedly Rearrested After Release Posted: 24 Jun 2014 11:59 AM PDT  Just a day after the news broke that she would walk free from prison, Meriam Yahya Ibrahim, the Sudanese Christian woman who was sentenced to death for her Christian beliefs, has reportedly been rearrested. Ibrahim's legal team told CNN's Nima Elbagir and Jason Hanna that she was rearrested at the airport following her release from Omdurman women's prison on Monday after attempting to leave Sudan on Tuesday. Ibrahim was at the airport in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, with her husband, Daniel Wani, who is an American citizen, and her two children, one of whom was born during her stay in prison.
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| First US military advisers working in Iraq Posted: 24 Jun 2014 11:49 AM PDT The first teams of up to 300 US military advisers have begun their mission in Baghdad to assist the Iraqi army in its fight against Sunni extremists, the Pentagon said Tuesday. Admiral John Kirby told reporters that "we have begun to deploy initial assessment teams" and two teams of about 40 troops "have started their new mission." The first two teams were drawn from the US embassy in Iraq, and an additional 90 troops had arrived to set up a joint operations center in Baghdad, Kirby said. "These teams will assess the cohesiveness and readiness of Iraqi security forces, hire headquarters in Baghdad, and examine the most effective and efficient way to introduce follow-on advisers," he said. |
| Iraq needs Western support in government formation: U.N. official Posted: 24 Jun 2014 11:46 AM PDT The top U.N. official in Baghdad has urged the West to encourage Iraq's political groups to form a new government in line with the constitutional and help them overcome sectarian tension. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has said Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki told him he would meet a July 1 deadline to form a new inclusive government, but the blocs are divided over how to proceed after an election two months ago, faced with a war against Sunni militants. At least a 1,000 people have been killed in fighting and other violence in Iraq in June alone as Sunni Islamists from the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) sweep through the north, the United Nations said on Tuesday. |
| The Daily Fix: Boko Haram Strikes Again, Why 'Redskins' Is a Slur, and Defrocked Pastor Reinstated Posted: 24 Jun 2014 11:38 AM PDT Boko Haram, the violent Islamic militant group that has been terrorizing Nigeria, has struck again. The attacks are the latest in a relentless campaign of violence, "with Nigeria's army seemingly incapable of enforcing security in vast swaths of the country," The Los Angeles Times reported. It has been more than two months since Boko Haram stole hundreds of girls from a school in Chibok, and it's believed more than 270 girls are still being held. Despite "intense international pressure on Nigeria's government and military to recover the girls," Nigerian officials "appear to lack the will or capacity to overcome the security crisis," the Times reported. |
| Air raids kill 38 as Iraq forces hold off assaults Posted: 24 Jun 2014 11:37 AM PDT  Iraqi air strikes killed at least 38 people on Tuesday as security forces held off attacks on a strategic town and an oil refinery, officials and witnesses said. In the town of Baiji, north of Baghdad, morning air strikes killed at least 19 people and wounded at least 17, officials said, while further raids in the evening killed six more. The officials said the dead and wounded were civilians, and it was unclear if there were any casualties among the militants who were the target of the strikes. In the Husseibah area of Anbar province, west of Baghdad, another air strike killed seven militants and six civilians, witnesses said.
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| Investigators Find Second Bridgegate While Investigating First Posted: 24 Jun 2014 11:36 AM PDT  The New York Times reported Tuesday that officials are investigating whether the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey violated securities laws and deceived bond holders by mischaracterizing a project to repair the Pulaski Skyway. While investigating first Bridgegate, over whether Christie's administration caused lane closures on the George Washington Bridge to punish the Fort Lee mayor, federal officials zeroed in on the the Pulaski Skyway. The Skyway is a crumbling bridge owned and operated by the state (not Port Authority) that connects the cities of Newark and Jersey City. In 2010, Christie's office pushed to use $1.8 million from a cancelled rail tunnel to fund repairs of the bridge, but when the Port Authority said the bridge didn't fall into their jurisdiction, state transportation officials and Gov. Christie himself said they planned on funding the repairs anyway.
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| First US military advisers deploy in Iraq Posted: 24 Jun 2014 11:30 AM PDT Washington (AFP) - The first teams of up to 300 US military advisers have deployed to Baghdad to assist the Iraqi army in its fight against Sunni extremists, the Pentagon said Tuesday. |
| Kurdish leader cites 'new reality' in Iraq Posted: 24 Jun 2014 11:17 AM PDT Iraq's top Kurdish leader warned visiting Secretary of State John Kerry on Tuesday that a rapid Sunni insurgent advance has already created "a new reality and a new Iraq," signaling that the U.S. faces major difficulties in its efforts to promote unity among the country's divided factions. |
| No oil supply shortage due to Iraq unrest, says OPEC Posted: 24 Jun 2014 11:08 AM PDT  The head of OPEC on Tuesday said there was no oil supply shortage due to the crisis in Iraq and that any increase in price on the markets was due to speculative trading. "Right now the market is very well supplied," said OPEC Secretary General Abdullah El-Badri, on a visit to Brussels for talks with European Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger. "There is no shortage on the oil market in any place in the world. Of course there is an uprising in Iraq but this has not affected the production area," El-Badri said.
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| Retailers Capitalize on Iraq Crisis With ISIS Merchandise Posted: 24 Jun 2014 11:04 AM PDT  T-shirts and other apparel featuring the emblem and teachings of the radical Islamist group ISIS have been making their way around the world as the Sunni group spreads its reach across northern and western in Iraq and parts of Syria. Retailers in Sunni-majority Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country, have been particularly aggressive, setting up websites and Facebook pages to hawk the merchandise. The ISIS gear includes hoodies, t-shirts, baseball tees (oh the irony), and action figures. As Robert Gearty reported, Facebook has acted to shut most of them down, citing company "rules that bar direct statements of hate, attacks on private individuals and groups, and the promotion of terrorism." Gear bearing slogans like "Mujahideen Around the World United We Stand," "Fight for Freedom Till The Last Drop of Blood" and even "We Stand for ISIS" - the acronym for Islamic State of Iraq and Syria/Levant - is still for sale on web pages of mainly Indonesian merchandisers, but the Menlo Park, Calif., social media company is no longer a part of the twisted promotion."
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| Boko Haram's kidnapped girls: Nigeria's side of the story Posted: 24 Jun 2014 11:03 AM PDT Nigerian president Goodluck Jonathan and his administration have been subject to withering criticism at home and abroad over the government's response to the Boko Haram kidnapping of some three hundred schoolgirls from Chibok. There are ongoing demonstrations in Nigeria by women, united across ethnic and religious boundaries, calling for greater government engagement in finding and liberating them. Abroad, the episode has highlighted Nigeria's governance challenges, including corruption and the apparent near-collapse of its military. Olusegun Akinsanya, office director of the Institute for Security Studies in Addis Ababa, a former senior Nigerian diplomat, a businessman, and an academic, has written a thoughtful analysis of the Chibok kidnapping and why it has been so hard for the Nigerian government to overcome Boko Haram. |
| 1 killed, 20 hurt in overnight bombing in Lebanon Posted: 24 Jun 2014 10:53 AM PDT  BEIRUT (AP) — A suicide bombing in a southern Beirut neighborhood killed a security officer and wounded 20 people, officials said Tuesday, as an al-Qaida-linked group warned that such attacks will continue as long as the militant Hezbollah group is taking part in Syria's civil war.
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| A challenging job for US special forces in Iraq Posted: 24 Jun 2014 10:52 AM PDT  WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. teams of special forces going into Iraq after a three-year gap will face an aggressive insurgency, a splintering military and a precarious political situation as they help Iraqi security forces improve their ability to battle Sunni militants.
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| Gunmen kill city council chief in Iraq's Kirkuk Posted: 24 Jun 2014 10:24 AM PDT  Gunmen killed the city council chief of Iraq's ethnically divided northern oil hub of Kirkuk on Tuesday, a police commander and a doctor said. Kirkuk lies at the heart of a swathe of disputed territory that Kurdish leaders want to incorporate into their autonomous region in the north. Sunni Arab opposition to the claim has helped fan a spectacular offensive that has seen militants seize a large swathe of northern and north-central Iraq, include several mainly Sunni Arab towns in Kirkuk province. Federal security forces withdrew in the face of the militant onslaught, allowing Kurdish troops to take control of Kirkuk city and other areas of the province.
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| Why a grim US economic picture is brightening Posted: 24 Jun 2014 10:24 AM PDT  WASHINGTON (AP) — When the government updates its estimate Wednesday of how the U.S. economy fared last quarter, the number is pretty sure to be ugly. Horrible even.
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| Iraq crisis: A cautionary tale for US exit from Afghanistan? Posted: 24 Jun 2014 10:16 AM PDT "What have we learned about the situation in Iraq that we can apply to Afghanistan, in terms of their ability to defend themselves once we're gone?" Sen. Richard Durbin (D) of Illinois asked during a recent hearing with Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey. "It is my judgment that the two bear very little comparison," Secretary Hagel responded. "Afghanistan is not Iraq – internally, historically, ethnically, religiously." Unlike Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, Afghanistan's two presidential candidates – currently engaged in a runoff election – have both said they will sign a security agreement to keep a residual presence of US troops in the country, Hagel noted. In light of recent developments in Iraq, however, US lawmakers are not reassured of the reliability of Afghan forces that US troops have spent a decade mentoring. |
