Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Obama to seek arms, training for Syrian opposition
• U.S. House formally condemns Obama for Guantanamo prisoner swap
• Australia says may raise terrorism threat level over Iraq, Syria
• GOP bill would avert fed shutdown till Dec. 11
• Ahead of speech, Obama briefs Congress on Islamic State strategy
• Obama tries to sell plan to defeat Islamic State
• NYC police: Terror threat more complex than ever
• Why Obama is seeking a Sunni coalition to defeat the Islamic State
• Senate candidates in Colo. clash on foreign policy
• Obama Tells Congress He Has All the Authority He Needs to Go After ISIS
• White House says beheaded U.S. journalist not 'sold' to Islamic State
• Obama says he has authority for militant campaign
• The strange saga of Jose Padilla: Judge adds four years
• House condemns Obama for prisoner swap
• Northeast primaries: Cuomo cruising now, but it hasn't been smooth sailing
• Al Qaeda's shadowy new 'emir' in South Asia handed tough job
• France to host conference on Iraq security crisis on September 15
• Congress considers review of police military gear
• Why Muslims from US, Europe join Islamic State
• Bombing kills head, leaders of Syrian rebel group
• Blast kills leader of Syrian Islamist group, other top figures
• Gulf urged to fund 'Arab Marshall Plan' to contain unrest
• How the US has justified overseas military action
• Iraq needs more than new government to address woes
• Brent crude price slides further
• Top Asian News at 8:00 p.m. GMT
• Attack on meeting kills 28 Syria rebel leaders
• Top Asian News at 7:30 p.m. GMT
• EU must keep up pressure on Russia over Ukraine, Britain says
• U.S. bombs IS in Iraq as Obama looks to present strategy
• GOP leader wants Obama to seek Hill OK for strike
• Top Asian News at 7:00 p.m. GMT

Obama to seek arms, training for Syrian opposition Posted: 09 Sep 2014 04:53 PM PDT The White House says President Barack Obama has told congressional leaders he has the authority he needs to take the action against the Islamic State militants that he will outline Wednesday night.

U.S. House formally condemns Obama for Guantanamo prisoner swap Posted: 09 Sep 2014 04:40 PM PDT House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to condemn President Barack Obama for failing to give Congress a 30-day notice before exchanging prisoner of war Bowe Bergdahl for five members of the Taliban who were being held at the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The House voted 249 to 163, with 22 Democrats joining the Republican majority in favor of the resolution. The measure has no legal clout, but it castigates Obama a day before he is due to address the American public to seek support for military action against Islamic State in Iraq and, possibly, Syria. The House debated the measure as Obama met at the White House with congressional leaders, including Republican House Speaker John Boehner, to discuss his plans.

Australia says may raise terrorism threat level over Iraq, Syria Posted: 09 Sep 2014 04:36 PM PDT The head of Australia's national security agency said he was "very seriously" considering raising the country's terrorism alert level to "high" due to the involvement of Australians in militant groups and the spiraling conflicts in Iraq and Syria. David Irvine, the outgoing head of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), said the number of Australians returning from fighting with Islamic State and other radical groups posed a growing risk. Australia has been at the "medium" alert level since a four-tier system was introduced in 2003.

GOP bill would avert fed shutdown till Dec. 11 Posted: 09 Sep 2014 04:29 PM PDT Republicans controlling the House unveiled a short-term spending bill Tuesday that would keep the government open into mid-December and provide $88 million to battle the Ebola outbreak. The spending measure ...

Ahead of speech, Obama briefs Congress on Islamic State strategy Posted: 09 Sep 2014 04:20 PM PDT By Steve Holland and Jeff Mason WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama told leaders of Congress on Tuesday that he did not need for them to authorize his strategy to fight Islamic State, ahead of a speech to Americans that may herald expanded operations against the group in Iraq and perhaps Syria. Obama's White House speech at 9 p.m. ET on Wednesday (0100 GMT on Thursday) will be his most significant effort to outline a strategy against a group whose savage methods have included the beheading of two American captives. Obama met Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi, the top Democrats in the U.S.

Obama tries to sell plan to defeat Islamic State Posted: 09 Sep 2014 04:12 PM PDT President Barack Obama stepped up his bid to convince Americans he has a plan to defeat the Islamic State, meeting top congressional leaders and scheduling a primetime speech for Wednesday. Obama will summon the symbolic weight of a televised address to the nation at 9:00 pm (0100 GMT Thursday), speaking from the ceremonial state floor of the White House. The speech will attempt to redress criticism that he has been slow to respond to the militant group's seizure of a haven in Syria and Iraq, amid fears fighters armed with Western passports could train their sights on the US homeland. "The president will lay out what he clearly sees as American interests in this situation," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said in his daily briefing Tuesday.

NYC police: Terror threat more complex than ever Posted: 09 Sep 2014 03:54 PM PDT NEW YORK (AP) — Air strikes in Iraq, ongoing unrest in Syria and the beheadings of two American journalists are casting a long shadow over the 13th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.

Why Obama is seeking a Sunni coalition to defeat the Islamic State Posted: 09 Sep 2014 03:34 PM PDT The last thing the United States wants to see as a result of President Obama's plan to defeat the Islamic State is a spreading suspicion that the US is in a fight with Sunni Islam. So a critical component of the administration's game plan is to enlist Sunni Arab countries as a key part of the international – though so far largely Western – coalition that will aim to roll back and ultimately destroy the extremist Sunni-Islamist militant group in control of a broad swath of Syria and Iraq. The effort to recruit Sunni Arabs to the cause is already under way, with Secretary of State John Kerry in Jordan and Saudi Arabia this week – in part to see what roles the Sunni Arab powers in the region can play, but also to press harder for the spigots of financial support to the militant group to be turned off. Mr. Obama is set to roll out his strategy for defeating IS, also known by the acronyms ISIS or ISIL, in a prime-time address to the nation Wednesday evening (9 p.m. EDT).

Senate candidates in Colo. clash on foreign policy Posted: 09 Sep 2014 03:34 PM PDT DENVER (AP) — Turning more to foreign policy in a Senate race that has centered on domestic concerns, Republican Rep. Cory Gardner on Tuesday blamed Democratic Sen. Mark Udall for not doing more to stop the rise of the terrorist organization that now controls much of Iraq and has beheaded two American reporters.

Obama Tells Congress He Has All the Authority He Needs to Go After ISIS Posted: 09 Sep 2014 03:15 PM PDT President Obama on Tuesday told congressional leaders he doesn't need legislative approval to pursue the military strategy against the Islamic State that he plans to outline to the nation on Wednesday night. The biggest question entering the meeting was whether Obama would seek a formal vote of authorization for his military campaign, as he did last year – unsuccessfully – when he wanted to launch missile strikes against the Bashar Assad regime in Syria. This time around, Obama told lawmakers he doesn't need them to sign off, according to a White House readout of the meeting. The leaders in attendance were House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).

White House says beheaded U.S. journalist not 'sold' to Islamic State Posted: 09 Sep 2014 03:13 PM PDT The United States has no information indicating beheaded American journalist Steven Sotloff was "sold" to Islamic State militants by moderate Syrian opposition rebels, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said on Tuesday. Sotloff family spokesman Barak Barfi told CNN on Monday night the family believed Islamic State paid up to $50,000 to rebels who told the militant group the 31-year-old journalist had entered Syria.

Obama says he has authority for militant campaign Posted: 09 Sep 2014 03:08 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama told congressional leaders Tuesday that he has the authority he needs to carry out a broader campaign to root out the violent extremists in Iraq and Syria, a day before outlining his plans to the American people in a prime-time address.

The strange saga of Jose Padilla: Judge adds four years Posted: 09 Sep 2014 03:03 PM PDT Convicted Al Qaeda supporter Jose Padilla received a new prison sentence on Tuesday, adding four years to his existing 17-year sentence in response to a federal appeals court ruling that his initial sentence was too lenient. Mr. Padilla was convicted in 2007 of involvement in a terror conspiracy and has been serving his sentence in a solitary confinement cell at the US government's supermax prison in Florence, Colo. His case has attracted international attention because prior to entering the criminal justice system, Padilla was designated an enemy combatant and held incommunicado without charge at a naval prison in Charleston, S.C. During his three years and eight months in military detention, Padilla was subjected to harsh interrogation techniques and prolonged isolation that mental health experts said may have caused permanent psychological injury.

House condemns Obama for prisoner swap Posted: 09 Sep 2014 02:39 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — The Republican-controlled House voted Tuesday to condemn President Barack Obama for failing to give 30-day notice to Congress about the exchange in May of American prisoner Bowe Bergdahl for five Taliban leaders held at the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Northeast primaries: Cuomo cruising now, but it hasn't been smooth sailing Posted: 09 Sep 2014 02:24 PM PDT In New York, which ranked dead last in turnout in the 2010 midterms, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) is expected to cruise to victory over Fordham law professor Zephyr Teachout, whose quixotic challenge from the progressive left could nevertheless damage the moderate Democratic incumbent. A champion of gay marriage and gun control in New York, Governor Cuomo has also carefully cultivated a fiscally conservative record in the state – not only to appeal to upstate conservatives to secure a sweeping margin of victory for a second term this fall, but also to build a moderate image for what many believe are longer-range national ambitions. So even a 30 percent showing by Ms. Teachout, a Vermont native and former director of Internet organizing for the 2004 Howard Dean presidential campaign, could embarrass the ambitious New York governor, some Democrats say, exposing his weakness among the party's liberal stalwarts.

Al Qaeda's shadowy new 'emir' in South Asia handed tough job Posted: 09 Sep 2014 02:21 PM PDT By Asim Tanveer and Maria Golovnina MULTAN Pakistan/ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistani militant Asim Umar has been handed a very tough job. Thrust into the limelight after being named leader of al Qaeda's newly created South Asian wing, he has been entrusted with reviving the network's fortunes at a time when Islamic State is generating grisly headlines and luring recruits. Little is known about the man whose thinking was shaped in radicalized seminaries and madrassas of Pakistan and who will now spearhead al Qaeda's activities from Afghanistan to Myanmar. In a video address aired last week, the group's chief, Ayman al-Zawahri, named him as the "emir" of a new branch of the network that masterminded the 2001 attacks on the United States.

France to host conference on Iraq security crisis on September 15 Posted: 09 Sep 2014 02:08 PM PDT France will host an international conference on Iraq's security crisis on Sept. 15, French President Hollande's office said on Tuesday, as a multi-national coalition tries to marshal an offensive against Islamic State insurgents. On Friday, Hollande will travel to Iraq to prepare the meeting and offer support to leaders combating the insurgents, becoming the first Western head of state to visit Iraq since Islamic State seized swathes of Iraqi territory this year. Iraqi President Fuad Masum and leaders of regional and global powers will attend the conference in Paris, which comes days after the United States announced the creation of a 'core coalition' to combat Islamic State militants in Iraq.

Congress considers review of police military gear Posted: 09 Sep 2014 01:53 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. government programs to help local police agencies obtain military-grade equipment evolved in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, but more than a decade later lawmakers are questioning why smalltown police departments need armored vehicles, automatic weapons and camouflage uniforms.

Why Muslims from US, Europe join Islamic State Posted: 09 Sep 2014 01:51 PM PDT For both Europe and the United States, the war also has a home front. Hundreds of IS jihadists have come from the West. The US State Department tries to do that by running videos on social media depicting the worst aspects of IS, such as the practice of beheading its enemies. Rather, says John Esposito of Georgetown University, many jihadists are religious novices, driven instead by "moral outrage, disaffection, peer pressure, search for new identity, for sense of meaning, purpose and belonging."

Bombing kills head, leaders of Syrian rebel group Posted: 09 Sep 2014 01:44 PM PDT Syrian state media and activists say that the head of one of Syria's largest rebel groups has been killed in a suicide bombing.

Blast kills leader of Syrian Islamist group, other top figures Posted: 09 Sep 2014 01:39 PM PDT An explosion killed the leader of one of Syria's most powerful Islamist insurgent groups Ahrar al-Sham on Tuesday, the group said, and an organization that monitors violence in the civil war said at least 28 of its commanders had died. Ahrar al-Sham is a hardline Islamist group and part of the Islamic Front alliance that has been in armed conflict with the Islamic State group which has seized swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq. A statement posted on Ahrar al-Sham's official Twitter feed said the blast had hit a meeting in Idlib province in northwest Syria and confirmed Hassan Aboud, the group's leader, among at least 12 dead. "We don't know the cause of the explosion yet," Abu Mustafa al-Absi, a member of Ahrar al-Sham's politburo told Al-Jazeera TV in an interview.

Gulf urged to fund 'Arab Marshall Plan' to contain unrest Posted: 09 Sep 2014 01:35 PM PDT Experts have urged wealthy Gulf states to pump billions of dollars into their Arab neighbours to fend off the kind of unrest that has engulfed Syria and Iraq. Meeting at a conference in Bahrain, bankers, regional analysts and economists said massive development was needed to fight the poverty and lack of opportunities that are fuelling unrest. "We need a pan-Arab Marshall development plan financed by rich Arab countries" in the Gulf, Ibrahim Dabdoub, deputy chairman of the International Bank of Qatar, told a conference in Manama organised by the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS) that ended on Monday. Fighting across the region, mainly in Syria and Iraq, has left thousands dead in the years since the mass demonstrations of the Arab Spring led to violent uprisings.

How the US has justified overseas military action Posted: 09 Sep 2014 01:21 PM PDT A look at the legal justifications the U.S. has used for military action around the world:

Iraq needs more than new government to address woes Posted: 09 Sep 2014 01:13 PM PDT Iraq's new cabinet lineup is not a major change and much more is needed to address grievances that contributed to the rise of brutal jihadists who seized swathes of the country, experts say. Having the support of Iraq's various religious and ethnic communities, especially members of its alienated Sunni Arab minority, is essential to the government's fight to regain ground lost to a sweeping offensive led by the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group. The proportion of posts given to members of the Shiite majority and the Sunni Arab and Kurdish minorities is largely the same as the previous government, and almost a third of the new ministers and deputy premiers held such posts before. "In terms of the sectarian division of the government, it's actually, if you're going to take it strictly by numbers, less inclusive," said Fanar Haddad, a research fellow at the Middle East Institute of the National University of Singapore.

Brent crude price slides further Posted: 09 Sep 2014 01:08 PM PDT Oil prices in London continued their steady slide Tuesday amid a flush market and little upside to the current demand picture. London's main contract, Brent North Sea crude for October delivery, lost $1.04 to end at $99.16 a barrel, its lowest since April 2013. In New York, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for October edged up nine cents to $92.75 a barrel. The easing of threats to supply in Iraq and Libya, and slightly alleviated tensions in Ukraine, removed some buying pressure from the market.

Top Asian News at 8:00 p.m. GMT Posted: 09 Sep 2014 01:06 PM PDT THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was likely struck by multiple "high-energy objects from outside the aircraft," causing it to break up over eastern Ukraine, a preliminary report into the deadly aviation disaster concluded Tuesday. The report by the Dutch Safety Board stopped short of saying the Boeing 777 was shot down by a missile but its findings point to that conclusion. It also did not say who might have been responsible.

Attack on meeting kills 28 Syria rebel leaders Posted: 09 Sep 2014 12:43 PM PDT "Twenty-eight heads of the Ahrar al-Sham group were killed in an explosion that targeted a meeting tonight... in Idlib province," Syrian Observatory for Human Rights director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP. The death toll was expected to mount as around 50 military and religious leaders attended the meeting in the basement of a house at Ram Hamdan, northeast of Idlib city. Among those who died was Ahrar al-Sham leader Hassan Abbud, said the Islamic Front, the country's biggest rebel alliance, in a statement on Twitter. Neither the Islamic Front and Abdel Rahman were able to say who may have been behind the attack.

Top Asian News at 7:30 p.m. GMT Posted: 09 Sep 2014 12:32 PM PDT THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was likely struck by multiple "high-energy objects from outside the aircraft," causing it to break up over eastern Ukraine, a preliminary report into the deadly aviation disaster concluded Tuesday. The report by the Dutch Safety Board stopped short of saying the Boeing 777 was shot down by a missile but its findings point to that conclusion. It also did not say who might have been responsible.

EU must keep up pressure on Russia over Ukraine, Britain says Posted: 09 Sep 2014 12:25 PM PDT By Adrian Croft MILAN (Reuters) - The European Union must keep up pressure on Russia over its involvement in the Ukrainian war because sanctions are having an effect, British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon said on Tuesday. EU ambassadors delayed implementation of a new package of sanctions on Russia on Monday to allow time to see if a ceasefire in Ukraine will hold. The unexpected decision laid bare divisions within the 28-nation EU over how energetically to pursue sanctions against Russia, which has already taken trade reprisals and threatened more if the EU tightens sanctions further. Fallon, speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of a European Union defense ministers' meeting in Italy that discussed the crises in Ukraine, Iraq and Libya, said the EU must remain determined over sanctions.

U.S. bombs IS in Iraq as Obama looks to present strategy Posted: 09 Sep 2014 12:05 PM PDT U.S. warplanes carried out more airstrikes against jihadists in western Iraq, the Pentagon said Tuesday, as President Barack Obama prepared to present his plan to defeat the Sunni extremists. American fighter jets, attack and drone aircraft conducted five bombing raids on Monday and Tuesday near the massive Haditha Dam in Anbar province, said the US Central Command, which oversees forces in the region. The US military said the strikes were in "support of Iraqi Security Forces and Sunni tribes protecting the Haditha Dam" against militants from the so-called Islamic State (IS). The bombing "destroyed or damaged" eight IS armed vehicles, including two that were "transporting anti-aircraft artillery," five other vehicles and one transport vehicle, Central Command said.

GOP leader wants Obama to seek Hill OK for strike Posted: 09 Sep 2014 12:04 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — The top Senate Republican says President Barack Obama should seek congressional approval for whatever he decides to do against Islamic State militants.

Top Asian News at 7:00 p.m. GMT Posted: 09 Sep 2014 12:02 PM PDT THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was likely struck by multiple "high-energy objects from outside the aircraft," causing it to break up over eastern Ukraine, a preliminary report into the deadly aviation disaster concluded Tuesday. The report by the Dutch Safety Board stopped short of saying the Boeing 777 was shot down by a missile but its findings point to that conclusion. It also did not say who might have been responsible.

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