Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Australia launches first airstrike in Iraq
• Kurds remain in control of Kobane: US military
• Obama claims progress combatting Islamic State
• U.S. frustrated by Turkish inaction, but seeks support over time
• Australian jets strike first Islamic State targets in Iraq
• Australia conducts first air strikes in Iraq
• US pressing Turkey to join anti-IS coalition
• Army imposes curfew after 21 killed in Turkey pro-Kurdish protests
• Obama allies getting harder to find these days
• US warns air power cannot save Syrian town from IS
• Canada suspects 80 returnees of 'terror' links
• What Obama associates are saying about him
• Canada seeks to jail 80 who took part in foreign terror plots
• French family of 11 believed to have left for Syria jihad
• WWII author Rick Atkinson says faces learning curve for next project
• White House walks back talk of Syria-Turkey buffer zone
• Senate Debates Are Mostly Heat and No Light
• Renewed assault on Kobani; 21 dead in Turkey as Kurds rise
• U.S. military says air power may not save Syrian town of Kobani
• Jihadists advance in Syria border town despite air strikes
• Islamic State group downs another Iraqi helicopter
• Friends: Aid worker captured in Syria knew risks
• Why Turkey is dragging its feet on helping anti-Islamic State coalition
• Syria, Iraq conflicts spark street clashes in Germany
• Turkey cuts 2014 growth forecast, blames Mideast tensions
• Belgium Islamist 'no different to Pussy Riot', trial hears
• Ebola: The kind of enemy the US military excels at fighting
• 2 New York police officers charged in sex assault
• Thousands of Kurds stage Iraq demo in support of Kobane
• Snowden and the Pope tipped for 'wide open' Nobel peace prize
• Canada lawmakers approve air strikes against Islamic State
• U.S.'s Kerry hints Kobani not strategic goal, buffer zone merits study
• UK police checking link to Syria in terror probe
• U.S. calls for 'strategic patience' after strikes near Kobani
• Jimmy Carter slams Obama on IS. Pile-on week at White House?
• SAY IT AIN'T SO, JOE!
• Fayetteville: A Military Town's Second Thoughts
• Iraqi helicopter shot down, pilots killed
• French family suspected of waging jihad in Syria
• Indonesia's released militants feared new Islamic State recruits

Australia launches first airstrike in Iraq Posted: 08 Oct 2014 04:36 PM PDT CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Defense officials say an Australian jet fighter has made the country's first airstrike against an Islamic State target in Iraq since the Australian government committed its air force to combat missions last week.

Kurds remain in control of Kobane: US military Posted: 08 Oct 2014 04:34 PM PDT Washington (AFP) - Kurdish forces are "holding out" against the Islamic State group in the Syrian border town of Kobane, and US-led warplanes have intensified bombing raids to push back the jihadists intent on seizing the area, the US military said Wednesday.

Obama claims progress combatting Islamic State Posted: 08 Oct 2014 04:19 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — Facing a stubborn enemy, President Barack Obama professed confidence Wednesday that the U.S. will keep making progress against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria, as the reality set in of a lengthy military conflict with limited prospects for success.

U.S. frustrated by Turkish inaction, but seeks support over time Posted: 08 Oct 2014 04:12 PM PDT By Arshad Mohammed WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is frustrated by Turkey's failure to stop the Islamic State onslaught on the Syrian town of Kobani but hopes to win its support against the group over time, a U.S. official said on Wednesday. Turkish troops have sat on the sidelines as Islamic State militants have fought to gain control of Kobani, a Syrian town on the border with Turkey that is largely populated by Kurds, who also constitute large minorities in Turkey and Iraq. Analysts and U.S. ...

Australian jets strike first Islamic State targets in Iraq Posted: 08 Oct 2014 04:02 PM PDT By Matt Siegel SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian fighter jets have made their first strike against Islamic State militants in Iraq, the Australian Defense Force said on Thursday, where a U.S.-led coalition is engaged in a fierce bombing campaign to weaken the group. Last week, Prime Minister Tony Abbott said Australian special forces troops would be deployed to Iraq and that its aircraft would also join the air strikes. "Overnight the Australian Air Task Group operating in the Middle East attacked its first target in Iraq," the Australian Defense Force said in a statement. ...

Australia conducts first air strikes in Iraq Posted: 08 Oct 2014 03:59 PM PDT A Super Hornet fighter jet has carried out Australia's first bombing raid in the fight against the Islamist State group in Iraq, the defence ministry said Thursday.

US pressing Turkey to join anti-IS coalition Posted: 08 Oct 2014 03:54 PM PDT Washington (AFP) - The United States is pushing Turkey to join the fight against Islamic militants, amid frustration and wariness in both governments heightened by Ankara's unease at helping besieged Kurdish communities.

Army imposes curfew after 21 killed in Turkey pro-Kurdish protests Posted: 08 Oct 2014 03:35 PM PDT Diyarbakir (Turkey) (AFP) - Turkey's military on Wednesday imposed a curfew in parts of the southeast after at least 21 people were killed in pro-Kurdish protests over the government's failure to act against jihadists attacking the Syrian border city of Kobane.

Obama allies getting harder to find these days Posted: 08 Oct 2014 03:22 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is finding himself with few friends in Washington.

US warns air power cannot save Syrian town from IS Posted: 08 Oct 2014 03:01 PM PDT Washington (AFP) - President Barack Obama conferred with commanders Wednesday on the "difficult" fight against Islamic State jihadists as the US military warned air power alone could not prevent the group from seizing a key Syrian border town.

Canada suspects 80 returnees of 'terror' links Posted: 08 Oct 2014 02:44 PM PDT Ottawa (AFP) - Canada said Wednesday 80 citizens and immigrants who recently returned from war zones including Iraq and Syria are suspected of having links to "terrorism" groups.

What Obama associates are saying about him Posted: 08 Oct 2014 02:25 PM PDT How some of Obama's associates have been treating him lately:

Canada seeks to jail 80 who took part in foreign terror plots Posted: 08 Oct 2014 02:24 PM PDT By David Ljunggren OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada wants to arrest 80 people who returned to the country after taking part in suspected terrorism-related activities, the public safety minister said on Wednesday. Canadian security officials have fretted for years about the number of young men traveling abroad to join militant groups, including Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. The Canadian Parliament approved a government plan on Tuesday to send six fighter jets to the Middle East to join a U.S.-led bombing campaign against Islamic State fighters in Iraq. ...

French family of 11 believed to have left for Syria jihad Posted: 08 Oct 2014 01:57 PM PDT Paris (AFP) - Eleven members of the same family from the French city of Nice are believed to have left for Syria, with some suspected of planning to fight alongside jihadists, a judicial source said on Wednesday.

WWII author Rick Atkinson says faces learning curve for next project Posted: 08 Oct 2014 01:42 PM PDT By Ian Simpson WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Author Rick Atkinson, who won a Pulitzer Prize for a best-selling World War Two history, said on Wednesday he was facing a steep learning curve for his next project on the American Revolution. After 15 years of researching and writing about World War Two, Atkinson said the 1775-1781 war that freed 13 American colonies from Britain and created the United States was a brand new subject. "It's a steep learning curve for me. I know a lot about World War Two, a lot less about the Revolution and 18th century warfare and 18th century societies," he said. ...

White House walks back talk of Syria-Turkey buffer zone Posted: 08 Oct 2014 01:41 PM PDT Washington (AFP) - The White House denied Wednesday it was planning to create a safe haven along Turkey's border with Syria, after France backed the proposal and the US and British top diplomats said the idea was worth examining.

Senate Debates Are Mostly Heat and No Light Posted: 08 Oct 2014 01:21 PM PDT What are voters actually hearing from Senate candidates in the final bruising weeks of the midterm election campaign? Tuesday evening's debate in North Carolina between embattled Democratic Sen. Kay Hagan and Republican challenger Thom Tillis is a case in point. Hagan chose to open the debate in Research Triangle Park, N.C., by declaring that "Speaker Tillis has built a record of dividing our state, always putting the wealthy and big corporations first." Later, she called Tillis "spineless" for criticizing President Obama's handling of the ISIS militants in Syria and Iraq while refusing to say what he would do. Meanwhile, an equally rough-and-tumble one-hour debate at the Georgia National Fair between Senate Democratic candidate Michelle Nunn and Republican candidate David Perdue was almost impossible to hear.

Renewed assault on Kobani; 21 dead in Turkey as Kurds rise Posted: 08 Oct 2014 01:20 PM PDT By Daren Butler and Jonny Hogg MURSITPINAR Turkey/ANKARA (Reuters) - Islamic State fighters launched a renewed assault on the Syrian city of Kobani on Wednesday night, and at least 21 people were killed in riots in neighboring Turkey where Kurds rose up against the government for doing nothing to protect their kin. Heavily outgunned defenders said Islamic State militants had pushed into two districts of the mainly Kurdish border city late on Wednesday, despite U.S.-led air strikes that the Pentagon acknowledged would probably not be enough to safeguard the town. ...

U.S. military says air power may not save Syrian town of Kobani Posted: 08 Oct 2014 01:14 PM PDT By Arshad Mohammed and Phil Stewart WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. military on Wednesday said air power alone may not save the Syrian town of Kobani from Islamic State militants as U.S. officials appeared to brace for the town's fall. Although the U.S. military carried out six air strikes to try to keep the town from IS hands, it also acknowledged that Kobani and other towns may be overrun by the group, which has seized swathes of Iraq and Syria this year. U.S. ...

Jihadists advance in Syria border town despite air strikes Posted: 08 Oct 2014 01:13 PM PDT Mursitpinar (Turkey) (AFP) - Jihadists fighting to take the strategic Syrian border town of Kobane advanced Wednesday despite intensified US-led air strikes, as deadly protests over the fate of its Kurdish residents shook neighbouring Turkey.

Islamic State group downs another Iraqi helicopter Posted: 08 Oct 2014 01:00 PM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — Militants with the Islamic State group on Wednesday shot down an Iraqi military attack helicopter, killing the two pilots on board in the second such incident in a week and raising concerns about the extremists' ability to attack aircraft amid ongoing U.S.-led airstrikes.

Friends: Aid worker captured in Syria knew risks Posted: 08 Oct 2014 12:49 PM PDT INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — An American aid worker threatened with beheading in Syria had researched the region and knew the dangers, but he believed the good he could accomplish through his relief organization outweighed the risk, his friends said Wednesday.

Why Turkey is dragging its feet on helping anti-Islamic State coalition Posted: 08 Oct 2014 12:42 PM PDT Building an international coalition to assist the United States in the effort to degrade and ultimately defeat the Islamic State militant group in Iraq and Syria was never going to be an easy task.

Syria, Iraq conflicts spark street clashes in Germany Posted: 08 Oct 2014 12:35 PM PDT Berlin (AFP) - Street clashes pitting Kurds against radical Muslims left 23 people wounded in Germany, police said Wednesday amid fears that fighting in Syria and Iraq could further inflame passions.

Turkey cuts 2014 growth forecast, blames Mideast tensions Posted: 08 Oct 2014 12:28 PM PDT Istanbul (AFP) - Turkey on Wednesday lowered its economic growth forecast for 2014 to 3.3 percent, blaming external factors including the chaos in neighbours Syria and Iraq and increased uncertainty in the global economy.

Belgium Islamist 'no different to Pussy Riot', trial hears Posted: 08 Oct 2014 11:55 AM PDT Brussels (AFP) - A hardline Islamist accused of inspiring dozens of young Belgians to fight jihad in Syria is no different from feminist activists Femen and Pussy Riot, his lawyer said on Wednesday.

Ebola: The kind of enemy the US military excels at fighting Posted: 08 Oct 2014 11:23 AM PDT On cable news, it's easy to find both calls for the Obama administration to ramp up its military effort to "destroy" the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and Syria – and warnings that the president's deployment of up to 4,000 troops to help contain Ebola in Liberia and its neighbors is a disaster waiting to happen.

2 New York police officers charged in sex assault Posted: 08 Oct 2014 10:29 AM PDT ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Two police officers from New York have been charged with sexually assaulting a woman in an Atlantic City casino.

Thousands of Kurds stage Iraq demo in support of Kobane Posted: 08 Oct 2014 10:05 AM PDT Arbil (Iraq) (AFP) - Thousands of Kurds demonstrated Wednesday in front of the UN headquarters in Arbil to demand international support for the Syrian town of Kobane as it tries to resist a deadly jihadist assault.

Snowden and the Pope tipped for 'wide open' Nobel peace prize Posted: 08 Oct 2014 09:47 AM PDT Oslo (AFP) - The race for the Nobel peace prize, to be announced Friday, has rarely been as open or unpredictable, experts say, with the pope and Edward Snowden tipped as possible winners.

Canada lawmakers approve air strikes against Islamic State Posted: 08 Oct 2014 09:45 AM PDT OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadian legislators on Tuesday approved government plans to send fighter jets to Iraq, where they will take part in U.S.-led air strikes against Islamic State militants for up to six months. The result of the vote was never in doubt, since the ruling Conservatives have a majority in the House of Commons. Members of Parliament voted 157-134 in favor of the mission. The two main opposition parties had opposed the mission on the grounds that Prime Minister Stephen Harper had not given enough details and could drag the country into a long drawn-out war. ...

U.S.'s Kerry hints Kobani not strategic goal, buffer zone merits study Posted: 08 Oct 2014 09:41 AM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry suggested on Wednesday that preventing the fall of the Syrian town of Kobani to Islamic State fighters was not a strategic U.S. objective and said the idea of a buffer zone should be thoroughly studied. "As horrific as it is to watch in real time what is happening in Kobani ... you have to step back and understand the strategic objective," Kerry told reporters at a news conference with British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond. ...

UK police checking link to Syria in terror probe Posted: 08 Oct 2014 09:19 AM PDT LONDON (AP) — London police are questioning four terrorism suspects believed to have been plotting an attack inside Britain and checking a possible link to the Islamic State group.

U.S. calls for 'strategic patience' after strikes near Kobani Posted: 08 Oct 2014 09:15 AM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Wednesday reported six airstrikes that helped stop Islamic State militants from taking over the Syrian town of Kobani, but played down the significance of the battle in the long-term U.S. strategy to defeat the Islamist group. The airstrikes destroyed an armored personnel carrier, armed vehicles and artillery belonging to the militant group, which had threatened to overrun the town on the Turkish border, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement. ...

Jimmy Carter slams Obama on IS. Pile-on week at White House? Posted: 08 Oct 2014 09:09 AM PDT First this week it was Leon Panetta, former secretary of Defense. Now it's former President Jimmy Carter who's bashing President Obama's approach to the Islamic State takeover of territory in Syria and Iraq.

SAY IT AIN'T SO, JOE! Posted: 08 Oct 2014 09:01 AM PDT LOS ANGELES -- I could be mad at Vice President Joe Biden, who has been here for two days and tied up traffic for miles at a time. But it's hard. He's just too nice a guy, even if he talks too much -- and worse, these days, tells the truth. In fact, he had to apologize to a few countries last week for telling the truth about them. That would be Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, places governed by proud, thin-skinned men easily shocked by candor. ...

Fayetteville: A Military Town's Second Thoughts Posted: 08 Oct 2014 09:00 AM PDT By Andy Sullivan FAYETTEVILLE, NC, Oct 8 (Reuters) - After 13 years of war, life outside the gates of the United States' largest military base has settled into a familiar ebb and flow. Army paratroopers and commandos stationed at Fort Bragg periodically board transport planes bound for Iraq and Afghanistan, leaving spouses to handle the carpooling and holiday planning. So when President Barack Obama announced a new military campaign to contain Islamic radicals in Syria and Iraq several weeks ago, little seemed to change in this city of some 200,000 folks, just west of Interstate 95. On the night the President announced a new wave of air strikes, TVs in the local sports bars were tuned to a football game between the New York Jets and the Chicago Bears.

Iraqi helicopter shot down, pilots killed Posted: 08 Oct 2014 08:42 AM PDT Samarra (Iraq) (AFP) - An Iraqi military helicopter was shot down by suspected jihadist fighters Wednesday, five days after a similar incident in the same location north of Baghdad, officers said.

French family suspected of waging jihad in Syria Posted: 08 Oct 2014 07:46 AM PDT PARIS (AP) — French officials say they suspect an entire family — 11 people including a grandmother — of departing to wage jihad in Syria.

Indonesia's released militants feared new Islamic State recruits Posted: 08 Oct 2014 07:40 AM PDT The looming release of hundreds of militants from Indonesia's prisons, hotbeds of radicalism where influential Islamists openly preach extremist ideology, is ringing alarm bells and raising fears some will join forces with the Islamic State group.

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