Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Syrians have 'no escape' from war
• 'Terror' attack on Egypt naval vessel leaves 8 servicemen missing
• Suspect in Philippines deaths: Extradition coming
• Doors closing for Syrians seeking refuge abroad: humanitarian agencies
• Final deal in Iran nuclear talks unlikely by deadline: sources
• Love Thy ‘Gay-bor’: Religious Pro-LGBT Ads Target Baptists in the Deep South
• US hosts coalition officers to plan fight against IS
• Iraqi forces advance in bid for Baiji refinery
• Poll: Arab opinion strongly negative on Islamic State
• Iran says it has responded to Obama's letters
• Kurds gain ground but not control in struggle for Syrian border town
• US faces uphill battle in Iraq's Anbar
• Iraq PM sacks 36 army officers in anti-corruption drive
• Turkish nationalists assault U.S. sailors in Istanbul
• Iraq's premier shakes up his military
• Bone Fragments Found in Greek Tomb from Era of Alexander the Great
• US sailors hit by 'hood attack' in Turkey
• In Denmark, a new tactic for returning European jihadis: counseling
• Iraqi PM sacks 26 army commanders for incompetence and graft
• U.S., allies conduct 23 air strikes in Syria, Iraq: military
• Car bombs kill at least four in east Libya as chaos mounts
• Skeleton could solve riddle of ancient Greek tomb
• John McCain Says Obama's ISIS Strategy Reminds Him of Vietnam
• Obama in Myanmar to throw weight behind stuttering reforms
• Skeletal remains found at tomb from Alexander the Great's era
• Year of crises stretches militaries, governments to limit
• Here's How The US Is About To Change Global Torture Rules
• Kurds block an Islamic State supply route to Syria's Kobani
• George W. Bush likes idea of Jeb Bush vs Hillary Clinton in 2016
• Car bombs wound at least 20 in east Libya as chaos mounts
• Germany arrests suspected IS supporters, raid properties
• Iraq needs wheat planting boost to salvage next harvest: U.N.
• Iraq: 17 killed in bombings in and around Baghdad
• Spokesman: IS group visits Pakistan militants
• Baghdad bombings 'kill 11'
• Syria Kurds 'sever jihadist supply route to Kobane'
• Special Report: The fighters of Iraq who answer to Iran
• U.S.-led strikes have killed 865 people in Syria, 50 civilians: monitor
• Wounded Iraq War veteran, anti-war activist dies

Syrians have 'no escape' from war Posted: 12 Nov 2014 04:15 PM PST Syrians are increasingly unable to escape their country's war as tougher policies in potential host nations are preventing them from taking refuge in the region and beyond, a report said Thursday. The report by the Norwegian Refugee Council and International Rescue Committee noted the "substantial and generous hospitality" of Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Turkey to accept three million Syrians. "In the context of increasing humanitarian needs within Syria and in neighbouring countries, legitimate national security concerns and insufficient international support, the formal and informal border crossings out of Syria are now effectively closed to men, women and children seeking safety," said the report. In recent weeks, Lebanon has all but shut its frontiers to new refugees, allowing only humanitarian exceptions across, while Jordan and Turkey frequently place restrictions on their entry, it added.

'Terror' attack on Egypt naval vessel leaves 8 servicemen missing Posted: 12 Nov 2014 04:04 PM PST The Egyptian military said one of its navy vessels came under "terrorist" attack in the Mediterranean on Wednesday, leaving five servicemen injured and eight others missing at sea. The Egyptian government is fighting an Islamist militant insurgency that has killed scores of policemen and soldiers, but a maritime attack is unprecedented.

Suspect in Philippines deaths: Extradition coming Posted: 12 Nov 2014 04:02 PM PST ALBANY, New York (AP) — A former U.S. Marine accused of killing a couple in the Philippines said Wednesday his extradition is looming and he looks forward to finally fighting the charges.

Doors closing for Syrians seeking refuge abroad: humanitarian agencies Posted: 12 Nov 2014 03:05 PM PST OSLO (Reuters) - Syria's neighbors Lebanon, Turkey, Jordan and Iraq are cutting back sharply on the number of Syrians they allow onto their soil as they can no longer cope with the influx of refugees, two prominent humanitarian agencies said on Thursday. The number of refugees able to flee their country's civil war fell 88 percent in October compared with the 2013 monthly average, to 18,453 people from over 150,000, the International Rescue Committee and the Norwegian Refugee Council reported. ...

Final deal in Iran nuclear talks unlikely by deadline: sources Posted: 12 Nov 2014 02:21 PM PST By Louis Charbonneau and Parisa Hafezi NEW YORK/ANKARA (Reuters) - Despite nearly a year of negotiations, Iran and six major powers are unlikely to meet a Nov. 24 deadline to reach a final deal to lift international sanctions on Tehran in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program, officials say. Western and Iranian officials told Reuters the two sides would probably settle for another interim agreement that builds on the limited sanctions relief agreed a year ago as they hammer away at their deep disagreements in the coming months. "We could see the outline of a final deal emerging by Nov. ...

Love Thy ‘Gay-bor’: Religious Pro-LGBT Ads Target Baptists in the Deep South Posted: 12 Nov 2014 01:47 PM PST Mary Jane Kennedy is a self-described "Bible-believing, born-again Christian." The Mississippi mother of three sons has taught Sunday school and Bible study at her Baptist church.

US hosts coalition officers to plan fight against IS Posted: 12 Nov 2014 01:19 PM PST Military officers from more than 30 countries in the US-led coalition against the Islamic State group will meet Wednesday at a US base to plan the war effort against the jihadists, the American military said. Nearly 200 military planners will gather for more than a week at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, home to US Central Command, which is overseeing the air war against the IS group in Iraq and Syria. "The conference provides an opportunity for coalition partners to strengthen relationships and further develop and refine military campaign plans to degrade and defeat ISIL," Central Command said in a statement, using an alternative acronym for the extremist group. Commanders from more than 20 coalition partners met about a month ago in Washington and the session starting this week represented another "milestone," Central Command said.

Iraqi forces advance in bid for Baiji refinery Posted: 12 Nov 2014 12:52 PM PST BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi government forces made significant advances on Wednesday in an effort to break an Islamic State siege of the country's biggest refinery just outside the city of Baiji, an army commander and state television said. Backed by Shi'ite militias, government forces have seized 60 percent of the city centre and are close to opening a corridor to Islamic State militants ringing the refinery, 200 km (130 miles) north of the capital, said the commander. ...

Poll: Arab opinion strongly negative on Islamic State Posted: 12 Nov 2014 11:46 AM PST The Arab public has an overwhelmingly negative view of the Islamic State and a clear majority of Arabs support the goal of the US-led coalition to "degrade and destroy" the extremist Islamist group – even though the same public sees the US and Israel as the biggest beneficiaries of the anti-IS fight.

Iran says it has responded to Obama's letters Posted: 12 Nov 2014 11:29 AM PST TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — A top security official in Iran said Wednesday the Islamic Republic has written back in response to letters sent by U.S. President Barack Obama, the first acknowledgement of such correspondence. However, it's not clear whether Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei wrote the letters himself.

Kurds gain ground but not control in struggle for Syrian border town Posted: 12 Nov 2014 11:21 AM PST By Rasha Elass and Hamdi Istanbullu BEIRUT/MURSITPINAR Turkey (Reuters) - Syrian Kurds backed by fighters from northern Iraq have gained ground towards breaking the siege of the Syrian border town of Kobani but are drawing heavy fire from Islamic State insurgents and have yet to win back control. Iraqi Kurdish peshmerga, or "those who face death," arrived with armored vehicles and artillery more than a week ago to try to repulse a more than month-old siege that has tested a U.S.-led coalition's ability to halt the Islamist insurgents. ...

US faces uphill battle in Iraq's Anbar Posted: 12 Nov 2014 11:03 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — The defeat was the most humiliating for the Iraqi military in months.

Iraq PM sacks 36 army officers in anti-corruption drive Posted: 12 Nov 2014 10:59 AM PST Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi on Wednesday sacked 36 army officers in an anti-corruption drive at a time when the military is locked in conflict with Islamic State group jihadists. His office said that Abadi, who also serves as armed forces commander in chief, and has already sacked a number of senior army officers, dismissed 26 military commanders and sent 10 into retirement. Abadi also named 18 commanders of new defence ministry posts, his office said, as part of efforts to "reinforce the military along professional lines and fight all forms of corruption". Defence Minister Khaled al-Obaidi vowed last month to investigate military failings that allowed the Islamic State group to overrun large areas of Iraq and to hold those responsible to account.

Turkish nationalists assault U.S. sailors in Istanbul Posted: 12 Nov 2014 10:56 AM PST ISTANBUL (Reuters) - A group of Turkish ultra-nationalists attacked three U.S. sailors on a crowded street in Istanbul on Wednesday, shouting "Yankee go home" and trying to pull hoods over their heads in an assault condemned by the United States. Video footage posted on the website of the ultra-nationalist Turkish Youth Union showed the attackers surrounding the sailors, calling them "murderers" and throwing orange paint at the men. The attackers' actions were an apparent reference to an incident in Iraq in July 2003, when U.S. ...

Iraq's premier shakes up his military Posted: 12 Nov 2014 10:42 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq's prime minister on Wednesday ordered his first major shakeup of his military since taking office three months ago, relieving 26 army officers of their commands and retiring 10 others as a monitoring group said airstrikes by a U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group and other extremists in neighboring Syria have killed more than 860 people, including civilians, since they began in September.

Bone Fragments Found in Greek Tomb from Era of Alexander the Great Posted: 12 Nov 2014 10:26 AM PST Skeletal remains have been discovered inside a lavish burial complex in Greece that dates back to the era of Alexander the Great. The tomb is thought to be the largest of its kind in the Greek world, and the bone fragments could help solve the mystery of who was buried inside.

US sailors hit by 'hood attack' in Turkey Posted: 12 Nov 2014 10:04 AM PST A group of nationalist Turkish youths on Wednesday attacked three visiting US sailors in Istanbul, trying to force sacks on their heads in an assault angrily condemned by the US government. Several dozen members of the nationalist youth group Turkiye Genclik Birligi (Turkish Youth Union/TGB) attacked the sailors in the Eminonu district on the Istanbul waterfront, a popular tourist hub. The use of hoods was a reference to an incident from the 2003 Iraq war that outraged many in Turkey when US forces in northern Iraq arrested a group of Turkish soldiers, forced hoods on their heads and held them for three days. The incident inflamed nationalist sentiment in Turkey and formed the basis of the smash-hit 2006 film about Turkish agents in Iraq "Valley of the Wolves: Iraq".

In Denmark, a new tactic for returning European jihadis: counseling Posted: 12 Nov 2014 09:47 AM PST No one could blame Danes for being suspicious of the Grimhojvej mosque in greater Aarhus on the Kattegat sea. The mosque, a brown-brick low-rise in an industrial zone, has served as a stopping point for 22 of the 31 local residents who are believed to have traveled to war zones in Syria and Iraq.

Iraqi PM sacks 26 army commanders for incompetence and graft Posted: 12 Nov 2014 09:31 AM PST By Raheem Salman BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi sacked 26 military commanders on Wednesday for corruption and incompetence, in an apparent effort to improve the army's performance against Islamic State militants. "The military leadership should have competence, and this is an important thing, as it is not possible for someone who is not efficient to do his work properly," Abadi said in comments to army officers broadcast on state television. "The second thing is integrity, as efficiency without integrity produces a vacuum. ...

U.S., allies conduct 23 air strikes in Syria, Iraq: military Posted: 12 Nov 2014 08:37 AM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S.-led forces conducted 16 air strikes in Syria, most of them around Kobani near the Turkish border, and seven in the oil-producing northern region of Iraq since Monday, the U.S. Central Command said. Ten air strikes conducted by the United States and its allies near Kobani hit eight small Islamic State units, damaged three fighting positions and destroyed a logistics facility, Centcom said Wednesday in a statement. The town has become a test of the U.S.-led coalition's ability to halt the advance of the hardline insurgents. ...

Car bombs kill at least four in east Libya as chaos mounts Posted: 12 Nov 2014 08:29 AM PST By Ayman al-Warfalli BENGHAZI Libya (Reuters) - Car bombs exploded in eastern Libyan towns under the control of the internationally recognized government on Wednesday, killing at least four people and wounding 20 others, officials said. Four more people were killed when an air strike - a possible response to the car bombs - hit targets in Derna, an eastern town home to a large radical Islamist community, medics said. Libya is in growing chaos as armed factions compete for power. ...

Skeleton could solve riddle of ancient Greek tomb Posted: 12 Nov 2014 08:25 AM PST ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Bones from a skeleton found in the innermost chamber of a huge, looted tomb in Greece could help archaeologists solve the riddle of who was buried there in opulent splendor, during the twilight of Alexander the Great's reign in the late 4th century B.C.

John McCain Says Obama's ISIS Strategy Reminds Him of Vietnam Posted: 12 Nov 2014 08:13 AM PST President Will Likely Send More Troops to the Region, McCain Predicts

Obama in Myanmar to throw weight behind stuttering reforms Posted: 12 Nov 2014 07:44 AM PST US President Barack Obama landed in Myanmar Wednesday as the once cloistered nation hosted its biggest gathering of world leaders since shedding junta rule, but concerns over the pace of democratic reforms surfaced immediately. Obama, who will meet Southeast Asian leaders and attend the East Asia Summit in the purpose-built capital of Naypyidaw, signalled he would throw his political might into re-igniting the democratic process.

Skeletal remains found at tomb from Alexander the Great's era Posted: 12 Nov 2014 07:21 AM PST ATHENS (Reuters) - Archaeologists have found skeletal remains inside a limestone grave at a vast ancient tomb in Greece dating to Alexander the Great's era, the most significant discovery to date at the site. The Amphipolis site is believed to be the largest ancient tomb to have been discovered in Greece, and has spurred speculation as to whether the ancient conqueror or a member of his family was buried there. Alexander died in Babylonia - in present day Iraq - but his burial site is not known. ...

Year of crises stretches militaries, governments to limit Posted: 12 Nov 2014 07:21 AM PST By Peter Apps WASHINGTON (Reuters) - From a standoff with Russia to fights against Ebola and Islamic State, 2014 has pitted western policymakers against a scale of crises unparalleled in recent years. The result, current and former officials say, has been a degree of overstretch in Washington, Whitehall and Brussels on a scale few can remember. The risk is that other danger signs get missed. Even when officials say they know what needs to be done, an era of budget cuts means the required resources, particularly military, may simply not be there. ...

Here's How The US Is About To Change Global Torture Rules Posted: 12 Nov 2014 07:08 AM PST The Obama Administration Will Appear in Geneva for a Review of America's Record

Kurds block an Islamic State supply route to Syria's Kobani Posted: 12 Nov 2014 05:14 AM PST BEIRUT (Reuters) - Kurdish forces blocked a road Islamic State militants use to resupply their forces in a Syrian town on the Turkish border, a town official and a monitoring group said on Wednesday, the first major gain against the jihadists after weeks of violence. Iraqi-Kurdish peshmerga forces crossed into Kobani on Oct. 31 to help the besieged Kurdish YPG and YPJ fighters in the town. The combined forces have now cut off the road which leads south east to the village of Hilnij, the sources said. ...

George W. Bush likes idea of Jeb Bush vs Hillary Clinton in 2016 Posted: 12 Nov 2014 05:06 AM PST By Steve Holland DALLAS (Reuters) - Never mind the potential for name fatigue. Former U.S. President George W. Bush likes the idea of a 2016 presidential matchup between his Republican brother Jeb Bush and Democrat Hillary Clinton. In an interview as part of the rollout of a book he has written about his father, former President George H.W. Bush, Bush said he is urging Jeb to try to make it three Bush presidents. Jeb Bush, 61, is a former two-term governor of Florida who is considering entering the Republican presidential nomination race for 2016 and says he'll make up his mind by year's end. ...

Car bombs wound at least 20 in east Libya as chaos mounts Posted: 12 Nov 2014 04:47 AM PST BENGHAZI Libya (Reuters) - Car bombs exploded in eastern Libyan towns under the control of the internationally-recognized government on Wednesday, wounding at least 20 people, officials said. Libya is in growing chaos as armed factions compete for power. One has taken over the capital Tripoli, setting up its own government and parliament and forcing the elected parliament and administration of Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni to move east. One car bomb went off in a busy street in the eastern city of Tobruk near the Egyptian border, where the elected parliament is based in a hotel. ...

Germany arrests suspected IS supporters, raid properties Posted: 12 Nov 2014 04:12 AM PST BERLIN (Reuters) - Police arrested nine men suspected of supporting militant groups in Syria and raided numerous properties in one of the largest sweeps against alleged Islamists in Germany yet, prosecutors said on Wednesday. More than 240 police officers took part in the operation in Germany's most populous state of North Rhine-Westphalia, targeting a network believed to help radical organizations that included Islamist State. A 58-year-old Pakistani man, Mirza Tamoor B., was arrested on suspicion that he smuggled two fighters from Germany to Syria, while a 31-year-old German, Kais B. O. ...

Iraq needs wheat planting boost to salvage next harvest: U.N. Posted: 12 Nov 2014 03:58 AM PST By Maggie Fick CAIRO (Reuters) - To address Iraq's deepening food insecurity international donors need to not only feed displaced people but also help farmers salvage next year's wheat harvest, a senior United Nations official told Reuters. The prospect is not starvation tomorrow but rather a drastic drop in food production that would hit Iraq hard in next summer's harvest season and beyond, Cyril Ferrand said in a telephone interview from Rome. ...

Iraq: 17 killed in bombings in and around Baghdad Posted: 12 Nov 2014 03:57 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Suspected Sunni militants struck in and around Baghdad on Wednesday, killing 17 people including 11 soldiers and policemen, and injuring about 40 in three separate attacks, including two suicide bombings, according to police and hospital officials.

Spokesman: IS group visits Pakistan militants Posted: 12 Nov 2014 03:14 AM PST DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (AP) — A spokesman for a small Pakistani militant group claims that a delegation from the Islamic State group has visited Jundallah's leaders in southwestern Pakistan.

Baghdad bombings 'kill 11' Posted: 12 Nov 2014 03:03 AM PST A car bomb near a main Baghdad square followed by a suicide bombing at a nearby police headquarters killed 11 people and wounded 23 Wednesday, security and medical officials said. A police colonel said six of the dead and 11 of the wounded from the blasts in west Baghdad were policemen. The car bomb struck near Nisur Square, where guards from the Blackwater security company gunned down at least 14 civilians in 2007, sparking widespread anger and boosting opposition to US forces in the country. Baghdad is hit by near-daily bombings and shootings that kill hundreds of people each month.

Syria Kurds 'sever jihadist supply route to Kobane' Posted: 12 Nov 2014 02:59 AM PST Kurdish forces fighting the Islamic State group in the flashpoint Syrian town of Kobane on Wednesday cut off a key supply route used by the jihadists, a monitoring group said. "The (Syrian Kurdish) People's Protection Units (YPG) targeted IS positions behind the (strategic) Mashta al-Nur hill and cut off the Halanj-Ain al-Arab road south of the town," said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, using the Arabic name Ain al-Arab for Kobane. The YPG has been fighting the IS since mid-September in Kobane. The Syrian Kurds are backed by Iraqi Kurdish peshmerga fighters and Syrian rebels.

Special Report: The fighters of Iraq who answer to Iran Posted: 12 Nov 2014 02:06 AM PST By Babak Dehghanpisheh BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Among the thousands of militia fighters who flocked to northern Iraq to battle militant group Islamic State over the summer was Qais al-Khazali. Khazali is the head of a militia called Asaib Ahl al-Haq that is backed by Iran. Thanks to his position he is one of the most feared and respected militia leaders in Iraq, and one of Iran's most important representatives in the country. His militia is one of three small Iraqi Shi'ite armies, all backed by Iran, which together have become the most powerful military force in Iraq since the collapse of the national army in June.

U.S.-led strikes have killed 865 people in Syria, 50 civilians: monitor Posted: 12 Nov 2014 01:59 AM PST BEIRUT (Reuters) - Air strikes by U.S.-led forces in Syria have killed 865 people, including 50 civilians, since the start of the campaign in late September against Islamic State militants, a group monitoring the war said on Wednesday. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the majority of the deaths, 746, were Islamic State fighters and that the actual figure could be much higher. Islamic State has seized tracts of territory in Syria and neighboring Iraq, where it has also been targeted by U.S.-led forces since July. ...

Wounded Iraq War veteran, anti-war activist dies Posted: 12 Nov 2014 01:01 AM PST SEATTLE (AP) — Tomas Young, a wounded Iraq War veteran who was an outspoken critic of the conflict and the subject of the 2007 documentary "Body of War," has died. He was 34.

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