Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Obama's pick to head Pentagon not always on same page as president
• U.S. military monitoring Islamic State training in Libya: general
• In Iraq, US and Iranian forces move in separate areas
• Would-be California militant is schizophrenic, lawyer says
• Why is key partner in Islamic State fight absent from coalition talks?
• How to topple Islamic State? 3 strengths that can be turned to weaknesses
• Lebanon says detained woman was Baghdadi wife for three months
• Defense bill hits snag over land swaps, wilderness
• Obama hosts Pentagon brass at time of uncertainty
• Kerry says any Iran strikes against IS 'positive'
• US: Iran launches airstrikes in Iraq against IS
• From Egyptian judges: conspiracy theories, mass death sentences, and freedom for Mubarak
• Turkey-US moving closer on Syria no-fly zone: Ankara
• U.S. senator seeks formal declaration of war against Islamic State
• US teacher stabbed to death in Abu Dhabi mall
• US, Iranian forces operate in separate areas in Iraq
• Swedish premier to call for new vote on March 22
• France is ready to step up airstrikes in Iraq
• U.S. believes Iran launched air raids on Islamic State in Iraq
• U.S. remains opposed to cooperating with Iran against Islamic State: White House
• Paul seeks 'declaration of war' on Islamic State
• Obama’s New Defense Chief Is Brilliant, but Is He a Smart Choice?
• UNESCO wants ban on Iraq, Syria art trafficking
• Global coalition stepping up against Islamic State
• U.S. leads 25 more air strikes against Islamic State militants: CENTCOM
• Oil prices recover slightly; ruble hits new lows
• Iraq official: Arrested woman not IS leader's wife
• AP Interview: Iraq official says war hurts economy
• US teacher stabbed to death in Abu Dhabi
• US Congress moves toward OK for financing war on IS jihadists
• Sentence delayed again in Florida terror case
• U.S.-led coalition damages Islamic State, but fight is long: Kerry
• Assad says U.S.-led strikes on Syria ineffective: Paris Match magazine
• Special Report: How Exxon helped make Iraqi Kurdistan
• Iraq will ask NATO for help training its security forces
• Iraq says woman detained in Lebanon is not Baghdadi wife
• Top Muslim leader urges broader action against Islamist militants
• Eyeing 2016, Jeb Bush talks foreign policy
• China, Turkey, Angola slip in global graft index

Obama's pick to head Pentagon not always on same page as president Posted: 03 Dec 2014 04:19 PM PST By Andrea Shalal and Matt Spetalnick WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Ashton Carter, a veteran Washington insider President Barack Obama is expected to name as his new defense secretary, built a reputation as a behind-the-scenes team player during many years in senior Pentagon posts. But scrutiny of the 60-year-old former physicist's views on issues ranging from North Korea to Iraq to defense spending also show an independent thinker whose opinions have not always aligned fully with those of the president. ...

U.S. military monitoring Islamic State training in Libya: general Posted: 03 Dec 2014 03:27 PM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. military is closely monitoring a nascent effort by Islamic State, the militant group that has overrun parts of Syria and Iraq, to train a couple of hundred fighters in eastern Libya, the commander of U.S. forces in Africa said on Wednesday. Army General David Rodriguez, head of the U.S. Africa Command, said it was not yet clear how closely aligned the trainees were with Islamic State or whether the effort should be targeted by U.S. forces. He said he had not recommended U.S. ...

In Iraq, US and Iranian forces move in separate areas Posted: 03 Dec 2014 03:03 PM PST Revelations about Iranian air strikes against Islamic State militants in Iraq have illustrated how American and Iranian forces are operating in separate areas to avoid confrontation, part of a fragile alignment fraught with risk, US officials and analysts say. Air raids by Iranian F-4 Phantom fighters over the weekend reflect a pattern in which Iranian or US military advisers have carved out separate spheres in Iraq as the two arch-rivals seek to defeat a common enemy -- the IS group, defence officials said. The bombing run in eastern Iraq marked the first time the Iranian air force had flown its F-4 fighters in a combat mission against the IS group, US officials said. Defence officials said both Tehran and Washington want to avoid confrontations or accidents that could spin into an international crisis or feed sectarian violence, and take pains to steer clear of the other nation's troops.

Would-be California militant is schizophrenic, lawyer says Posted: 03 Dec 2014 03:02 PM PST By Sharon Bernstein SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Reuters) - A California man accused of trying to cross into Canada to eventually join the Islamic State militant group has been diagnosed as schizophrenic, his lawyer said Wednesday. Nicholas Teausant, 21, was arrested in March as he allegedly headed to the border in hopes of joining Islamic State, which controls large areas of Iraq and Syria and has claimed responsibility for beheading Western hostages. ...

Why is key partner in Islamic State fight absent from coalition talks? Posted: 03 Dec 2014 02:55 PM PST When Secretary of State John Kerry gathered the 60 members of the anti-Islamic State international coalition for a pep talk in Brussels Wednesday, one of the most active countries in the fight to roll back and eventually destroy the extremist Islamist group was not even present.

How to topple Islamic State? 3 strengths that can be turned to weaknesses Posted: 03 Dec 2014 01:43 PM PST The Islamic State has gained ground over wide swaths of Iraq and Syria and strengthened its hold on major cities in those areas through a combination of military organization, money, and social media savvy.

Lebanon says detained woman was Baghdadi wife for three months Posted: 03 Dec 2014 01:36 PM PST BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanon's interior minister said on Wednesday that a women detained by security forces was the wife of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi for three months, the first Lebanese government official to speak publicly on the arrest. Security officials in Lebanon, speaking on condition of anonymity, had said on Tuesday that the Lebanese army detained a wife and daughter of Baghdadi as they crossed from Syria late last month. ...

Defense bill hits snag over land swaps, wilderness Posted: 03 Dec 2014 01:31 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — Quick passage of a sweeping defense policy bill hit a snag on Wednesday over public lands, dividing Senate Republicans.

Obama hosts Pentagon brass at time of uncertainty Posted: 03 Dec 2014 01:25 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is convening top military leaders on Wednesday for an evening at the White House at a time of deep uncertainty for the Pentagon, where the defense secretary is on his way out and the military faces tough questions about its strategy in the Middle East.

Kerry says any Iran strikes against IS 'positive' Posted: 03 Dec 2014 01:19 PM PST US Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday welcomed any Iranian military action against Islamic State jihadists in Iraq as "positive" after the Pentagon said Tehran had carried out air strikes against the group. Kerry, hosting a meeting of an anti-IS coalition in Brussels, said international airstrikes were finally stopping the advance of the jihadists across Iraq and Syria, but warned it could take years to finally defeat them.

US: Iran launches airstrikes in Iraq against IS Posted: 03 Dec 2014 01:18 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — Iranian jets have carried out airstrikes against Islamic State militants in Iraq in recent days, Pentagon officials and independent analysts say, underscoring the strange alliances generated by the war against the extremist group that has beheaded Americans and killed and terrorized Iraqi civilians.

From Egyptian judges: conspiracy theories, mass death sentences, and freedom for Mubarak Posted: 03 Dec 2014 01:00 PM PST A few days ago, an Egyptian judge tossed out a conviction against former dictator Hosni Mubarak that had found him responsible for the deaths of 11 protesters as he clung to power in early 2011, on rather odd procedural reasoning.

Turkey-US moving closer on Syria no-fly zone: Ankara Posted: 03 Dec 2014 12:56 PM PST NATO allies Turkey and the United States are narrowing their differences over plans to create a no-fly zone along the Syrian border, the Turkish foreign minister said on Wednesday. "When the idea of a no-fly zone and safe zone emerged everybody had differing views, and some did not even understand what it meant," Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was quoted by the state-run Anatolia news agency following a NATO meeting in Brussels. "I can say that our approach on this issue with the United States in particular is getting closer. We see the number of countries considering a no-fly zone or safe zone a must increasing," Cavusoglu added.

U.S. senator seeks formal declaration of war against Islamic State Posted: 03 Dec 2014 12:42 PM PST By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican Senator Rand Paul called on Congress on Wednesday to formally declare war on Islamic State, as debate intensified in the Senate and House of Representatives over the campaign in Iraq and Syria. The Kentucky senator introduced a Senate resolution seeking to declare that a state of war exists with the militant group, the target of four months of air strikes by U.S. and allied forces. ...

US teacher stabbed to death in Abu Dhabi mall Posted: 03 Dec 2014 12:21 PM PST An American teacher and mother of twins was stabbed to death in the toilets of an Abu Dhabi shopping mall by a suspect in a black Muslim veil, police said Wednesday. It was unclear what the motive was for Monday's attack in the upmarket Boutik Mall on Al Reem Island, which is popular with expats in the capital of the United Arab Emirates. The 37-year-old woman, who worked at an Abu Dhabi kindergarten, was stabbed by a person wearing a black robe, black gloves and a niqab -- a Muslim veil that conceals the face except for the eyes. The US embassy in Abu Dhabi confirmed the death of an American citizen, saying it was working with "all appropriate authorities to seek further information".

US, Iranian forces operate in separate areas in Iraq Posted: 03 Dec 2014 11:52 AM PST Recent Iranian air strikes against Islamic State jihadists in Iraq took place in an eastern region where US warplanes do not operate, the Pentagon said Wednesday, reflecting an accommodation between the two traditional rivals in their fight against a common enemy. US defense officials said air raids by Iranian F-4 Phantom fighters over the weekend targeting were part of a pattern in which Iranian or American military advisers have carved out separate spheres in Iraq. "It was in eastern Diyala province," Pentagon spokesman Colonel Steven Warren said of the air strike. The bombing run in eastern Iraq marked the first time the Iranian air force had flown its F-4 fighters in a combat mission against the IS group, US officials said.

Swedish premier to call for new vote on March 22 Posted: 03 Dec 2014 11:22 AM PST COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Sweden's prime minister said Wednesday he will call for new elections on March 22 after an anti-immigration party helped opposition lawmakers reject the left-leaning minority government's budget proposal.

France is ready to step up airstrikes in Iraq Posted: 03 Dec 2014 11:15 AM PST PARIS (AP) — France's president said that the country is ready to step up airstrikes against Islamic State militants in Iraq, alongside the U.S.-led coalition.

U.S. believes Iran launched air raids on Islamic State in Iraq Posted: 03 Dec 2014 11:11 AM PST By Phil Stewart WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States has indications that Iran has carried out air strikes on Islamic State targets in Iraq in recent days in what appeared to be the first such operations by Iran's air force, U.S. officials said on Wednesday. A senior Iranian official denied that Iran had launched any such strikes. U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the United States had indications that Iran had used F-4 Phantoms to launch the raids in Diyala near the Iranian border in the last several days. ...

U.S. remains opposed to cooperating with Iran against Islamic State: White House Posted: 03 Dec 2014 11:10 AM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House reiterated U.S. policy against cooperating with Iran in the fight against Islamic State on Wednesday in the wake of Iranian air strikes in Iraq. "At this point our calculation about the wisdom of cooperating with the Iranians hasn't changed. We're not going to do it," said White House spokesman Josh Earnest. (Reporting By Steve Holland; Editing by Doina Chiacu)

Paul seeks 'declaration of war' on Islamic State Posted: 03 Dec 2014 11:07 AM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — Potential 2016 presidential candidate Sen. Rand Paul is proposing a "declaration of war" against the Islamic State.

Obama’s New Defense Chief Is Brilliant, but Is He a Smart Choice? Posted: 03 Dec 2014 11:04 AM PST A day after the news that President Obama will choose Ashton B. Carter as the next defense secretary, here's the early word on how well he will perform as the replacement for the departing Chuck Hagel:  ...

UNESCO wants ban on Iraq, Syria art trafficking Posted: 03 Dec 2014 10:49 AM PST PARIS (AP) — The head of UNESCO is calling on the U.N. Security Council to adopt a ban on the illicit trafficking of cultural objects from conflict zones in Iraq and Syria.

Global coalition stepping up against Islamic State Posted: 03 Dec 2014 10:28 AM PST BRUSSELS (AP) — Islamic State militants invaded Iraq's west almost a year ago and overran the nation's second-largest city in June, threatening death and torture to opponents in their way. But the world has been slow to respond, coming together Wednesday for the first high-level meeting of scores of nations now devoted to destroying the rampant insurgency.

U.S. leads 25 more air strikes against Islamic State militants: CENTCOM Posted: 03 Dec 2014 10:23 AM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States military launched 14 more strikes against Islamic State militants in Syria and led 11 strikes in Iraq since Monday, according to U.S. Central command. The strikes in Syria, centered near the border town of Kobani, hit a large group of militant fighters as well as various fighting positions, Central Command said in a statement on Wednesday. In Iraq, the U.S-led strikes in six cities - Mosul, Ramadi, Tal Afar, Sinjar, Qaim and Falluja - destroyed bunkers, buildings, vehicles and two weapon facilities for the militant group. ...

Oil prices recover slightly; ruble hits new lows Posted: 03 Dec 2014 10:22 AM PST Oil prices rebounded slightly on Wednesday but the Russian ruble hit fresh all-time lows against the dollar and the euro, while European equities marked time on the eve of an ECB meeting. On crude oil markets, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in January rose 67 cents to $67.55 a barrel. Brent North Sea crude for January gained 44 cents to stand at $70.98 in London afternoon deals. Oil prices had tumbled by about two dollars on Tuesday after Iraq announced plans to boost the country's crude oil exports after striking a deal with the autonomous Kurdish region.

Iraq official: Arrested woman not IS leader's wife Posted: 03 Dec 2014 10:21 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — An Iraqi official denied Wednesday that a woman detained in Lebanon is a wife of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State group, adding that she is the sister of a terror suspect being held in Iraq.

AP Interview: Iraq official says war hurts economy Posted: 03 Dec 2014 10:18 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Plunging oil prices and soaring costs from Iraq's war against the Islamic State group is hurting Iraq's economy and will prompt government spending cuts, including in defense, the country's finance minister said Wednesday.

US teacher stabbed to death in Abu Dhabi Posted: 03 Dec 2014 09:59 AM PST DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — An American schoolteacher was stabbed to death in a public restroom at a mall in Abu Dhabi by a suspect wearing the full black veil commonly worn by local women throughout the Arab Gulf region, according to video released Wednesday by police.

US Congress moves toward OK for financing war on IS jihadists Posted: 03 Dec 2014 09:54 AM PST US congressional negotiators late Tuesday approved an emergency funding package to pay for military operations against the Islamic State jihadist group in Iraq and Syria, and a vote is expected in the coming days. A plan to train and equip moderate Syrian rebels, proposed by President Barack Obama, is also expected to be extended. The armed services committees of the House of Representatives and the Senate late Tuesday released the final text of the defense authorization act for the 2015 budget year, which runs from October 2014 to September 2015, after months of negotiations. The House should adopt the bill by the end of the week, said Democratic Senator Carl Levin and his Republican counterpart James Inhofe.

Sentence delayed again in Florida terror case Posted: 03 Dec 2014 09:47 AM PST MIAMI (AP) — Sentencing has been delayed again for a man convicted in Florida of supporting terrorism in a case in which an FBI employee posed online as a terror financing middleman.

U.S.-led coalition damages Islamic State, but fight is long: Kerry Posted: 03 Dec 2014 09:28 AM PST By Lesley Wroughton and Adrian Croft BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The U.S.-led coalition has inflicted serious damage on Islamic State, carrying out around 1,000 air strikes so far in Iraq and Syria, but the fight against the militants could last years, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Wednesday. The United States and its allies began air strikes in September after the Sunni militants made large territorial advances. The Iraqi army, Sunni tribal fighters and Kurdish forces have since recovered some ground from the group which in its Arabic acronym is known as Daesh. ...

Assad says U.S.-led strikes on Syria ineffective: Paris Match magazine Posted: 03 Dec 2014 08:48 AM PST BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said U.S.-led strikes in Syria have made no difference and described himself as a captain trying to save his ship, in comments to a French magazine and carried by the presidency's Twitter feed on Wednesday. Coalition forces led by the United States began bombing Islamic State militants and other jihadist factions in Syria in September. Asked whether this had been helpful to him, Assad, whose forces have fought the same groups, told Paris Match: "You can't end terrorism with aerial strikes. ...

Special Report: How Exxon helped make Iraqi Kurdistan Posted: 03 Dec 2014 07:52 AM PST By Dmitry Zhdannikov, Isabel Coles and Ned Parker LONDON/ARBIL (Reuters) - In January 2011, Exxon hired one of the best connected men in Iraq: Ali Khedery, an American of Iraqi descent who had served in Baghdad as a special assistant to five U.S. ambassadors and a senior adviser to three U.S. generals. At a meeting with Exxon a few months later to analyze Iraq's future, Khedery laid out his thoughts. Iraq under Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki was moving toward dictatorship and civil war, he said he told the session. ...

Iraq will ask NATO for help training its security forces Posted: 03 Dec 2014 06:18 AM PST BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Iraq plans to ask NATO for help training its security forces, the alliance said on Wednesday, months after the Iraqi army collapsed in the face of an offensive by Islamic State militants. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi informed NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg of Baghdad's plan at a meeting in Brussels, said Oana Lungescu, spokeswoman for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. NATO ambassadors will review the request once it is received, she said. ...

Iraq says woman detained in Lebanon is not Baghdadi wife Posted: 03 Dec 2014 05:07 AM PST BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's Interior Ministry said on Wednesday that a woman detained by Lebanese authorities was not the wife of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, but the sister of a man convicted of bombings in southern Iraq. Security officials in Lebanon had said on Tuesday the Lebanese army had detained a wife and daughter of Baghdadi's as they crossed from Syria late last month. "The one detained by Lebanese authorities was Saja Abdul Hamid al-Dulaimi, sister of Omar Abdul Hamid al-Dulaimi who is detained by authorities and sentenced to death for his participation in ... ...

Top Muslim leader urges broader action against Islamist militants Posted: 03 Dec 2014 04:55 AM PST CAIRO (Reuters) - A prominent Muslim cleric said on Wednesday the U.S.-led coalition carrying out air strikes on Islamic State insurgents should widen its scope to include all other militant groups that were tarnishing Islam. Islamic State, an offshoot of al Qaeda, has seized wide areas of Iraq and Syria and declared a caliphate to try to revive theocratic rule that prevailed in the region more than 1,000 years ago. Its militants have beheaded some prisoners and been accused of massacring and enslaving non-Sunni Muslims. ...

Eyeing 2016, Jeb Bush talks foreign policy Posted: 03 Dec 2014 04:06 AM PST Nearing a decision on a presidential run in 2016, Jeb Bush on Tuesday reaffirmed his support for the U.S. trade embargo against Cuba and pushed for a foreign policy that he said could help repair the nation's ...

China, Turkey, Angola slip in global graft index Posted: 03 Dec 2014 04:02 AM PST China, Turkey and Angola are perceived as increasingly corrupt despite strong economic growth in recent years, a leading anti-graft watchdog organization said Wednesday in its annual survey. Transparency ...

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