Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• GOP weighs increase in war funds to skirt Pentagon limits
• US returns Iraq treasures as IS threatens heritage
• Official: Iran confronts US at nuke talks over GOP letter
• Assad will 'never' have role in peace talks: US
• Iraqi intelligence reveals Baghdad car bombers' tricks
• US to slow down troop exit from Afghanistan
• White House consulting Petraeus on fight against IS
• US 'concerned' over alleged IS use of chlorine gas
• Iraqi artifacts recovered by US investigators in Connecticut
• U.S. conducts air strikes in Syria and Iraq against Islamic State
• As support wanes, U.S. oil prices resume sprint lower
• No place for Assad in Syria talks, U.S. officials say
• Minister says Iraq halts Tikrit operation to avoid losses
• Flight crew killed in Black Hawk training crash identified
• Why Congress Should Simply Bag the War Powers Debate
• France blocks five sites accused of condoning terrorism
• Kurds report more chlorine attacks, Iraq pauses Tikrit offensive
• Bosnia donates 550 tonnes of arms to Iraq, more may follow: minister
• Lufthansa, Austrian airlines suspend Arbil flights
• Clint Eastwood Describes His Near-Death Experience, Says 'American Sniper' Is Anti-War (Exclusive)
• Names of 4 Guardsmen killed in helicopter crash released
• A giant leap - from a plane - for Kentucky governor hopeful
• May defense bill vote seen in U.S. House, acquisition reform in works
• Sunni brigade forms unlikely alliance with Shiite militias
• U.S. returns scores of smuggled artifacts to Iraq government
• U.N. concerned by Islamic State's ability to unite Afghan insurgents
• Chechen woman kidnaps her Dutch children to join Islamic State
• EU and France deny any change in Syria policy
• Sydney Muslims countering mainstream media with new TV studio. Can it change minds?
• Security fears: Austrian flight to northern Iraq aborted
• For Nigeria's president, a future deeply tied to Boko Haram fight
• 5 million people need health services in Iraq: UN
• Nelly Performed in Iraq: Get the Details
• Bahrain arrests Iraq returnee trying to enter from Saudi
• Kurds probe 2 possible Islamic State chemical weapon attacks
• Bahrain seizes bomb-making equipment aboard bus from Iraq: agency
• Bahrain arrests young boy smuggling bomb-making materials
• Afghan army kills commander of Islamic State affiliate
• AP PHOTOS: Editor selections from the Middle East

GOP weighs increase in war funds to skirt Pentagon limits Posted: 16 Mar 2015 04:51 PM PDT House Republicans are considering adding tens of billions of dollars to President Barack Obama's request for overseas military operations in an effort to get around tight limits on Pentagon spending. The ...

US returns Iraq treasures as IS threatens heritage Posted: 16 Mar 2015 04:07 PM PDT As Iraq struggles to protect its ancient sites and heritage from the Islamic State group, the United States returned some 60 historical items to the country on Monday, many dating to thousands of years ago. Ancient glass vessels, clay images and bronze spears and axes were on display in Iraq's consulate in the United States as part of the hand over. The head of an Assyrian lamassu, or winged bull, taken from the palace of Sargon II in northern Iraq, was among the items that are headed back to Iraq's recently reopened national museum in Baghdad. Sargon's palace is in the province of Nineveh where the Islamic State group (IS) was seen in videos destroying and defacing ancient sites and items, including a winged bull like the one returned Monday.

Official: Iran confronts US at nuke talks over GOP letter Posted: 16 Mar 2015 03:42 PM PDT LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) — Iranian diplomats twice confronted their American counterparts about an open letter from Republican senators who warned that any nuclear deal could expire the day President Barack Obama leaves office, a senior U.S. official said Monday.

Assad will 'never' have role in peace talks: US Posted: 16 Mar 2015 03:29 PM PDT Syrian President Bashar al-Assad will never be part of peace negotiations to halt the brutal civil war, US officials vowed Monday, adding they were taking every step to bring an end to his rule. Top US diplomat John Kerry appeared to suggest in a weekend interview that Washington would have to talk with Assad eventually if peace was to be forged, but State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki moved to clarify that assertion. "As we have long said, there always has been a need for representatives of the Assad regime to be a part of that process," said Psaki.

Iraqi intelligence reveals Baghdad car bombers' tricks Posted: 16 Mar 2015 03:24 PM PDT Trap doors in floorboards and liquor bottles on backseats -- Iraq's intelligence service on Monday detailed how the Islamic State (IS) group's car bomb cell eluded the police for months. The suspected leader of the group was arrested riding a bicycle in an upmarket neighbourhood, a spokesman told AFP at the intelligence headquarters in Baghdad. The Iraqi national intelligence service (INIS) announced on Sunday it had arrested 31 people responsible for planning and carrying out 52 attacks in Baghdad in 2014 and 2015. "When we first picked up a scent in our hunt for this network, we organised surveillance that lasted six months," spokesman Fahim al-Atraqchi told AFP.

US to slow down troop exit from Afghanistan Posted: 16 Mar 2015 03:13 PM PDT The United States will scrap a plan to reduce the US force in Afghanistan to 5,500 by December, after American commanders appealed to keep more troops on the ground, officials said Monday. The White House is due to hold meetings in the coming days that will pave the way for a final decision expected to be announced next week, when Afghan President Ashraf Ghani meets US President Barack Obama in Washington. There are about 10,000 US troops currently in Afghanistan. It was unclear how many soldiers would remain in Afghanistan through December under the new plan, though officials estimated the number at roughly 7,000 to 8,000 troops.

White House consulting Petraeus on fight against IS Posted: 16 Mar 2015 02:38 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — Top officials in the Obama administration have consulted former CIA Director David Petraeus about the fight against the Islamic State group — despite his admission that he gave classified material to his biographer and mistress, the White House said Monday.

US 'concerned' over alleged IS use of chlorine gas Posted: 16 Mar 2015 02:30 PM PDT The US military said Monday it is "concerned" about reports that Islamic State jihadists used chlorine gas in an attack against Kurdish forces, but it could not confirm the account. Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan government said Saturday that an analysis of soil and clothing samples showed that the IS group employed chlorine gas in a car bomb attack on January 23. We have not been able to independently confirm it," said Pentagon spokesman Colonel Steven Warren. The alleged attack was another example of the "brutality" of the IS extremists and could signal their "desperation" as they come under mounting pressure on the battlefield, Warren said.

Iraqi artifacts recovered by US investigators in Connecticut Posted: 16 Mar 2015 02:06 PM PDT HARTFORD, Connecticut (AP) — Three smuggled artifacts from Saddam Hussein's private airport and palace that were recovered by federal investigators in the U.S. were among dozens of items being returned Monday to Iraq.

U.S. conducts air strikes in Syria and Iraq against Islamic State Posted: 16 Mar 2015 01:53 PM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States conducted five air strikes against Islamic State targets in Syria and an additional 12 along with coalition members in Iraq, the U.S. military said on Monday. The strikes in Syria, using fighter, attack and bomber aircraft, hit targets near al Haskah and Kobani, destroying four Islamic State fighting positions, it said in a statement. In Iraq, the United States and allies carried out 12 strikes, including one near Fallujah and two near Mosul, it added. (Reporting by Sandra Maler; Editing by Mohammad Zargham)

As support wanes, U.S. oil prices resume sprint lower Posted: 16 Mar 2015 01:50 PM PDT By Edward McAllister and Jessica Resnick-Ault NEW YORK (Reuters) - A four-day drop in U.S. oil prices has shattered a month of relative stability and raised the specter of another sustained move lower as rocketing production and swelling inventories re-emerge as dominant market forces. Hammered by oversupply, U.S. oil prices fell 60 percent from $107 a barrel in June to below $44 a barrel in January before rallying and trading in a range around $50 in February.

No place for Assad in Syria talks, U.S. officials say Posted: 16 Mar 2015 01:47 PM PDT By Matt Spetalnick WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States insisted on Monday it would never negotiate directly with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, edging away from comments made by Secretary of State John Kerry, and it cast doubt on any immediate prospects for third-party talks to resolve Syria's civil war. Kerry's apparent suggestion in a CBS television interview on Sunday that there could be a place for Assad in efforts to reach a diplomatic solution to the Syrian conflict drew swift criticism from European and Arab allies. Seeking to calm the diplomatic storm, State Department and White House officials sought to clarify Kerry's remarks and show that Washington's position on Assad had not softened. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said that while the United States accepted the need for representatives of Assad's government to participate in any negotiations, "it would not be and would never be - and it wasn't what Secretary Kerry was intending to imply - that that would be Assad himself." "We continue to believe ... that there's no future for Assad in Syria," Psaki told reporters.

Minister says Iraq halts Tikrit operation to avoid losses Posted: 16 Mar 2015 01:42 PM PDT Iraqi forces have halted a massive operation to retake the city of Tikrit from the Islamic State group to avoid casualties and protect infrastructure, Interior Minister Mohammed Ghabban said Monday. "What remains today is a very small part and it is the centre of the city of Tikrit," Ghabban said at a news conference in Samarra, north of Baghdad.

Flight crew killed in Black Hawk training crash identified Posted: 16 Mar 2015 01:38 PM PDT NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Members of a seasoned, Louisiana-based National Guard crew who died last week in a helicopter crash off the Florida coast had done tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan and participated in humanitarian missions after Gulf Coast hurricanes and in the response to the catastrophic 2010 BP oil spill, military officials said Monday.

Why Congress Should Simply Bag the War Powers Debate Posted: 16 Mar 2015 01:29 PM PDT Years from now, historians may be scratching their heads and asking why it was that Congress refused to grant President Obama specific new war powers to carry out a critical military campaign against ISIS terrorists. They have murdered and displaced tens of thousands of people throughout the Middle East, beheaded and crucified captives and methodically attempted to wipe away the religions, culture and art of previous Middle Eastern civilizations. At one time, it was almost unthinkable that the president would have to go it alone go it alone in waging war on ISIS, but now it seems almost a certainty that Congress will choose to stand on the sidelines rather than making the tough political decision of declaring new parameters for war in the Middle East. President Obama at one time voiced skepticism that he would need additional authority from Congress to wage allied air strikes against ISIS and arm and train allied militants and rebels in Iraq and Syria to eventually bring ISIS to its knees.

France blocks five sites accused of condoning terrorism Posted: 16 Mar 2015 01:25 PM PDT France has blocked five websites accused of condoning terrorism, in the first use of new government powers that came into force in February, the interior ministry said on Monday. One of the sites -- al-Hayat Media Center -- is accused of links to the Islamic State group, the ministry said. "I do not want to see sites that could lead people to take up arms on the Internet," Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said. The ban order was given to Internet service providers, who had 24 hours to take "all necessary measures to block the listing of these addresses" under the new rules.

Kurds report more chlorine attacks, Iraq pauses Tikrit offensive Posted: 16 Mar 2015 01:22 PM PDT By Isabel Coles and Maggie Fick ARBIL/BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq paused its Tikrit offensive on Monday and officials called for more air strikes against Islamic State militants, while an officer said Kurdish forces sustained two more chlorine gas attacks by insurgents. General Aziz Waisi told journalists the insurgents used chlorine twice during a January offensive west of Mosul and once in a December attack on his military police brigade in the Sinjar mountain area. Waisi said a number of military police - he did not say how many - were taken to hospital, where blood tests indicated they had inhaled chlorine gas released by the bombs.

Bosnia donates 550 tonnes of arms to Iraq, more may follow: minister Posted: 16 Mar 2015 01:22 PM PDT Bosnia has donated more than 550 tonnes of surplus arms and ammunition to Iraq as part of its involvement in the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State militants, the Balkan country's defense minister said on Monday. The donation was made on request from the United States and comprises arms and ammunition produced decades ago, when Bosnia was part of the now-defunct Yugoslav federation, Minister Zekerijah Osmic told reporters. Under its NATO and U.S.-sponsored defense reforms, Bosnia has to offload more than 16,500 tonnes of ammunition and more than 40,000 pieces of weaponry, a surplus left over after its 1992-95 war in which more than 100,000 people died. Bosnia is not in the NATO alliance but hopes to join.

Lufthansa, Austrian airlines suspend Arbil flights Posted: 16 Mar 2015 01:22 PM PDT Lufthansa and its Austrian Airlines unit have suspended flights to the northern Iraq city of Arbil until March 23, the German carrier said on Monday. Lufthansa did not give a reason for the suspension but United Arab Emirates airlines including Emirates and Etihad earlier this month suspended flights over security concerns.

Clint Eastwood Describes His Near-Death Experience, Says 'American Sniper' Is Anti-War (Exclusive) Posted: 16 Mar 2015 12:56 PM PDT The director spoke to students at the Loyola Marymount University School of Film & TV, where he took part in the ongoing Hollywood Masters interview series.

Names of 4 Guardsmen killed in helicopter crash released Posted: 16 Mar 2015 12:41 PM PDT NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The Black Hawk helicopter that crashed in dense fog during a March 10 training mission in Florida was piloted by a veteran flight crew with the Louisiana National Guard based in Hammond. All were killed.

A giant leap - from a plane - for Kentucky governor hopeful Posted: 16 Mar 2015 12:36 PM PDT ELIZABETHTOWN, Ky. (AP) — Will T. Scott does not hold statewide office. He is not a former councilman in the state's largest city. And he did not challenge one of the most powerful Republicans in Congress in a closely watched U.S. Senate race.

May defense bill vote seen in U.S. House, acquisition reform in works Posted: 16 Mar 2015 11:39 AM PDT By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives is moving toward a vote in mid-May on the annual half-billion-dollar defense policy bill, U.S. Representative Mac Thornberry, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, said on Monday. Thornberry also said he plans to introduce next week legislation to reform the U.S. defense acquisition process. There is no schedule yet for a vote on that bill in the House, he told a news briefing, saying he first wanted to open up the process for comments. The defense policy bill, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), will be reviewed in subcommittees during the week of April 20 and by the full Armed Services Committee during the week of April 27.

Sunni brigade forms unlikely alliance with Shiite militias Posted: 16 Mar 2015 11:24 AM PDT TIKRIT, Iraq (AP) — Dressed in green and carrying a heavy rifle, Yazan al-Jabouri paced along the front line on the fringes of the northern city of Tikrit, anxiously awaiting a plan of attack.

U.S. returns scores of smuggled artifacts to Iraq government Posted: 16 Mar 2015 11:13 AM PDT More than 60 Iraqi cultural artifacts smuggled into the United States, including a limestone statue of an ancient king, were returned to the government of Iraq on Monday, the Department of Homeland Security said. The move follows investigations led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in New York, Baltimore, Austin, Texas, and New Haven, Connecticut, the department said in a statement. Immigration and Customs agents seized the looted artifact in August 2008 after an antiquities dealer based in Dubai shipped it to New York. Other artifacts repatriated to Iraq include gold-plated items, such as a soap dish, looted from the private airport and palace of executed former President Saddam Hussein.

U.N. concerned by Islamic State's ability to unite Afghan insurgents Posted: 16 Mar 2015 10:49 AM PDT By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United Nations is concerned by the presence of Islamic State in Afghanistan but says the militant group's power to unite insurgents is more significant than its capabilities in the war-torn country, a top U.N. official said on Monday. U.N. envoy Nicholas Haysom briefed the U.N. Security Council on Afghanistan, where attempts are under way to broker an end to 13 years of conflict between the Taliban, who were ousted in a U.S.-led war in 2001, and Afghan and foreign forces. Afghan forces killed 10 fighters who claimed to be part of Islamic State on Sunday, amid reports that growing numbers of disgruntled Taliban fighters have joined the militant group that has seized swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq.

Chechen woman kidnaps her Dutch children to join Islamic State Posted: 16 Mar 2015 10:34 AM PDT A Chechen woman living in the Netherlands has taken her two young children against their father's will to join the Islamic State group in Syria, in what is believed to be the first such case, prosecutors said on Monday. The unnamed 32-year-old refugee flew with her children, a boy aged eight and a girl aged seven, from Charleroi in Belgium to Athens in November, possibly using false passports after their Dutch father warned police of their imminent departure. "She is most likely in Syria now. We are probing a kidnapping case," public prosecution spokeswoman Elsbeth Kleibeuker told AFP, adding that an international detention request had been issued for them.

EU and France deny any change in Syria policy Posted: 16 Mar 2015 10:29 AM PDT By Adrian Croft and Robin Emmott BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union and France denied any change in Western policy on Syria on Monday after U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said the United States would have to negotiate with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for a political transition there. French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said Kerry had assured him Washington had not altered its stand on Syria and he made clear Paris believed Assad should not stay in power. EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said a lasting solution to the Syrian conflict could be achieved only through "a Syrian-led political process leading to a transition". "The solution is a political transition (which) must both preserve regime institutions - not Mr Bashar al-Assad - ... and include the opposition, of course.

Sydney Muslims countering mainstream media with new TV studio. Can it change minds? Posted: 16 Mar 2015 10:18 AM PDT Muslims in Sydney, Australia, are taking news matters into their own hands. The One Path Network, a $1 million television studio set up by members of Sydney's Muslim community, features English-language programs that seek to counter mainstream media's portrayal of Islam, Malaz Majanni, head of the network, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Airing on the network's YouTube channel are programs that include interviews with local sheikhs on Islamic teachings, legal advice for Muslims, and responses to atrocities committed by groups such as the Islamic State, also known as ISIS. "This is a time where there is a lot of pressure on the Muslim community," Mr. Majanni said.

Security fears: Austrian flight to northern Iraq aborted Posted: 16 Mar 2015 09:49 AM PDT A spokeswoman for Austrian Airlines says the carrier has aborted a flight to the northern Iraqi city of Irbil and canceled another over security concerns. Kurdish fighters are battling IS extremists in ...

For Nigeria's president, a future deeply tied to Boko Haram fight Posted: 16 Mar 2015 09:11 AM PDT Since then, the homegrown militant group has suffered a string of territorial losses to a multinational force. Chad and Niger have pushed Boko Haram out of their territory and pursued the fighters well into Nigeria's northeast. Two weeks before the rescheduled election, Boko Haram is suffering more than it has in years. "One of Buhari's most successful campaign themes had been [Jonathan's] inability to provide security for the Nigerian people," says John Campbell, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and a former ambassador to Nigeria. Though there is public relief that the Boko Haram insurgency is blunted at the change in fortunes, it is still unclear how effective the military operation has been.

5 million people need health services in Iraq: UN Posted: 16 Mar 2015 09:05 AM PDT The UN's health body said Monday that more than five million people need medical services in Iraq as it bemoaned a 70 percent gap in funding required to help. "The longer we wait, the more critical the situation becomes for those who need urgent, life-saving health services," World Health Organisation (WHO) regional director Ala Alwan said during a visit to Iraq. The agency said that only 30.4 percent of the funding required by the health sector had been received, leaving a gap of $218.7 million (206 million euros). "More than five million people in Iraq are currently in need of health services.

Nelly Performed in Iraq: Get the Details Posted: 16 Mar 2015 08:49 AM PDT The concert reportedly raised support for the embattled Kurds who have been fighting the Islamic State in northern Iraq and Syria.

Bahrain arrests Iraq returnee trying to enter from Saudi Posted: 16 Mar 2015 08:44 AM PDT Bahrain has arrested a minor attempting to enter the kingdom from neighbouring Saudi Arabia with "bomb-making materials" he is suspected of bringing from Iraq, authorities said on Monday. The suspect was detained on Sunday as he was returning to Bahrain by bus across the 25-kilometre (16-mile) causeway that connects the archipelago with Saudi Arabia, police and prosecutors said. Chief prosecutor Ahmed al-Hamadi said that electronic components that could be used in bomb-making had been found in his possession. He was suspected of taking delivery of them from a Bahraini fugitive in Iraq with a view to delivering them to the flashpoint Shiite village of Sitra outside the capital Manama, Hamadi said in a statement carried by the official BNA news agency.

Kurds probe 2 possible Islamic State chemical weapon attacks Posted: 16 Mar 2015 07:47 AM PDT IRBIL, Iraq (AP) — Kurdish forces in Iraq are investigating two other possible chemical weapons attacks by the Islamic State group, a top official said Monday, as authorities put an Iraqi offensive to retake Saddam Hussein's hometown on hold.

Bahrain seizes bomb-making equipment aboard bus from Iraq: agency Posted: 16 Mar 2015 06:57 AM PDT Bahraini security forces have seized bomb-making equipment being smuggled from Iraq aboard a passenger bus for use in attacks in the Gulf Arab kingdom, the public prosecutor said. Like its neighbors, Bahrain is concerned that sectarian wars in nearby Iraq and Syria may undermine stability at home, where a Sunni Muslim monarchy has weathered a protest movement and sporadic bombings by the restive Shi'ite Muslim majority. The public prosecutor said that authorities found 140 detonators, 41 electrical circuits, a remote control device and some cellular telephones hidden inside electrical appliances aboard the bus when it was stopped for a routine search on the King Fahd Causeway linking Bahrain with Saudi Arabia. "The bag belonged to a passenger, a juvenile, who had brought it from Iraq, at the request of a person there who is wanted for terrorist crimes, to deliver to someone in the Sitra area with the aim of using it for terrorist operations," the state news agency BNA said, quoting the prosecutor.

Bahrain arrests young boy smuggling bomb-making materials Posted: 16 Mar 2015 06:40 AM PDT MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — Authorities in Bahrain arrested a young man on Monday who was trying to smuggle in bomb-making materials from Iraq, police said.

Afghan army kills commander of Islamic State affiliate Posted: 16 Mar 2015 06:26 AM PDT KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Afghan army killed a militant commander who had claimed allegiance to the Islamic State group, the Ministry of Defense said on Monday.

AP PHOTOS: Editor selections from the Middle East Posted: 16 Mar 2015 06:10 AM PDT In the Middle East this week, an Iraqi offensive to retake the Islamic State-held city of Tikrit drew wide attention as a coalition of soldiers, police officers, Shiite militias and Sunni tribesmen aided by Iranian advisers fought to seize Saddam Hussein's hometown.

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