Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Top Asian News 12:49 a.m. GMT
• What to do against ISIS? Congress largely agrees, Obama doesn't
• Carter: US willing to do more to help Iraqis retake Ramadi
• Man living in Iraq wins $6.4 million US jackpot
• Two charged with conspiracy to commit 'terrorism' in Australia after police raids
• Planned Parenthood suspect: 'I am a warrior for the babies'
• Senator Cruz introduces bill to let states reject refugees
• California shooters discussed martyrdom before meeting: FBI
• Breaking the ISIS economy, bit by bit
• Australian police say arrest two in 'counter-terror' raids
• U.S. ready to send advisers, helicopters to Iraq to help retake Ramadi
• Putin’s War of Words with Turkey Escalates to Nukes and Ethnic Cleansing
• Erdogan: Turkish troops in Iraq at Iraqi PM's request since 2014
• Man living in Iraq wins $6.4 million Oregon jackpot
• Does Islamic State have a heart? Red Cross hopes so.
• Greek police remove 2,300 migrants from Macedonia border
• For police, shootings reinforce need for military-style gear
• Another Paris attacker named, had been in Syria
• Syrian opposition seeks to close ranks as army gains on ground
• US Willing to Provide Apache Helicopters and Advisers to Help Retake Ramadi, Ash Carter Says
• IS gains and losses in Iraq and Syria
• Iraqi Kurd leader meets Erdogan as PM defends deployment
• West will remain vulnerable to IS threat: experts
• Rep. McCaul: why US is in 'highest threat environment since 9/11'
• White House: Obama undecided on use of attack helicopters in Iraq
• Singapore sees Islamist militancy 'clear, present danger' for Asia
• Father of Paris attacker 'would have killed son' if he knew of plot
• In IS stronghold, residents trapped in 'sealed casket' as Iraqi forces close in
• Singapore minister warns of Islamic State threat in SE Asia
• US urges more anti-IS efforts, may back Iraq with helicopters
• Syria rebels begin leaving Homs under truce deal
• AP EXPLAINS: The rise of German Chancellor Angela Merkel
• Turkey urges citizens to leave Iraq, excluding Iraqi Kurdistan: foreign ministry
• Text to mom announcing death reveals 3rd Bataclan attacker
• As House votes to restrict visa waivers, polls find support for new limits
• The Latest: UN: nearly 770,000 people enter Greece in 2015
• Turkish PM accuses Russia of 'ethnic cleansing' in Syria
• Turkish army hits Kurdish militant targets in northern Iraq overnight
• Iraqis eye next steps in Ramadi as IS claims Baghdad bombing
• US visas get new scrutiny after California, Paris attacks

Top Asian News 12:49 a.m. GMT Posted: 09 Dec 2015 04:49 PM PST BEIJING (AP) — Beijing residents stayed indoors, schools were closed and limits on cars, factories and construction sites kept pollution from spiking even higher Wednesday, the second of three days of restrictions triggered by the city's first red alert for smog. Cars with even-numbered license plates were kept off roads, and schools and constructions sites remained shuttered. Far fewer pedestrians walked the streets than usual — many of them wearing air filtering face masks to aid their breathing. Stuck at home, 8-year-old Zhao Hanxiao said she didn't mind missing school, but was fed up with not being able to play outside or go out to see friends.

What to do against ISIS? Congress largely agrees, Obama doesn't Posted: 09 Dec 2015 04:42 PM PST Since the Paris terrorist attacks and now the San Bernardino shootings, the partisan rhetoric on fighting the Islamic State (IS) has been flying. Republicans who oppose the president's plan to take in 10,000 Syrian refugees are "scared of widows and orphans," President Obama scoffed last month. Some Republicans seem to think if he were just "more bellicose," it would make a difference, he said derisively.

Carter: US willing to do more to help Iraqis retake Ramadi Posted: 09 Dec 2015 04:29 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — In a steady escalation of the fight against Islamic State militants, the U.S. military stands ready to send more American personnel and attack helicopters to Iraq, especially to help retake a key city seized by the extremists, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said Wednesday.

Man living in Iraq wins $6.4 million US jackpot Posted: 09 Dec 2015 04:24 PM PST PORTLAND, Oregon (AP) — An Oregon Lottery winner took more than three months to claim his $6.4 million Megabucks jackpot.

Two charged with conspiracy to commit 'terrorism' in Australia after police raids Posted: 09 Dec 2015 04:21 PM PST By Matt Siegel SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian police said they had charged a 20-year-old man and a 15-year-old boy with conspiracy to conduct an act of terrorism after they were arrested during early-morning raids in Sydney on Thursday. Police told a news conference the plots could have included attacks on government buildings, including the headquarters of the Australian Federal Police in Sydney, and attacks on random civilians. The arrests on Thursday resulted partly from evidence seized during police raids in December 2014, a police statement said.

Planned Parenthood suspect: 'I am a warrior for the babies' Posted: 09 Dec 2015 03:52 PM PST COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — The man accused of killing three people at a Colorado Planned Parenthood clinic stunned a courtroom Wednesday when he declared himself a "warrior for the babies" and said he was guilty and won't go to trial.

Senator Cruz introduces bill to let states reject refugees Posted: 09 Dec 2015 03:44 PM PST By Alana Wise and Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senator Ted Cruz, who is seeking the Republican nomination for president in 2016, said on Tuesday that he introduced legislation to give governors the ability to opt out of refugee resettlement programs. Cruz said that if President Barack Obama wanted to send refugees to any state, his legislation would let its governor refuse to participate, "to conclude that the federal government has not done a sufficient job ensuring that the safety and security of the citizens of the state will be protected." The comments came at a news conference with Greg Abbott, the Republican governor of Cruz's home state of Texas. Abbott was one of the first U.S. governors to seek to block the resettlement of refugees from Syria.

California shooters discussed martyrdom before meeting: FBI Posted: 09 Dec 2015 03:35 PM PST By Julia Harte and Mark Hosenball WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The couple who massacred 14 people at a California holiday party were discussing jihad and martyrdom online a year before they met in person, but there is no evidence Islamic militants arranged their marriage to facilitate an attack, FBI Director James Comey said on Wednesday. The Federal Bureau of Investigation believes Syed Rizwan Farook, 28, the U.S.-born son of Pakistani immigrants, and Tashfeen Malik, 29, a Pakistani native he married in Saudi Arabia last year, were each inspired by Islamic extremists before they became acquainted, he said on Capitol Hill. The precise origins of the couple's indoctrination in extremist ideology remain to be determined but appear to date back about two years, before Islamic State "became the global jihad leader that it is," Comey said.

Breaking the ISIS economy, bit by bit Posted: 09 Dec 2015 03:17 PM PST The finance ministers set to meet at the United Nations can't put the Islamic State in a financial vise. The core of the Islamic State's wealth is, in many respects, beyond the reach of next week's meetings, hosted by the US. Only Turkey can shut its borders to the smugglers who carry Islamic State oil and other contraband, and only military force can deprive the group of the territory it uses for extortion and taxation.

Australian police say arrest two in 'counter-terror' raids Posted: 09 Dec 2015 03:08 PM PST By Matt Siegel SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian federal and state police said on Thursday morning they had arrested two people as part of an ongoing operation to thwart attacks against civilians by home-grown and foreign radicals. "Two people have been arrested by the Joint Counter Terrorism Team Sydney as part of the ongoing Operation Appleby," the New South Wales State Police said in a statement. Sky News reported that one of those targeted in the raids was a 15-year-old boy.

U.S. ready to send advisers, helicopters to Iraq to help retake Ramadi Posted: 09 Dec 2015 02:49 PM PST By Phil Stewart and Yeganeh Torbati WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is prepared to deploy advisers and attack helicopters if requested by Iraq to help it "finish the job" of retaking the city of Ramadi from Islamic State, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Wednesday. Carter's remarks were the latest sign of U.S. preparations to intensify its military campaign against the group, which controls wide swaths of Iraq and Syria and has orchestrated and inspired attacks abroad.

Putin’s War of Words with Turkey Escalates to Nukes and Ethnic Cleansing Posted: 09 Dec 2015 02:45 PM PST While there has been no further military engagement between Russia and Turkey since a Russian bomber was shot down by the Turkish Air Force last month, the war of words in the most volatile region of the Middle East continues to escalate. In a roundtable interview with reporters on Wednesday, a senior Turkish official accused Russia of conducting an "ethnic cleansing" campaign in the northern part of Syria. At the same time, Russian President Vladimir Putin was reminding the world in general, and Turkey in particular, that not only is Russia a nuclear power, but that the Kremlin has nuclear-capable missiles aboard a submarine stationed just off Turkey's coastline.

Erdogan: Turkish troops in Iraq at Iraqi PM's request since 2014 Posted: 09 Dec 2015 02:30 PM PST Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan said that Turkish troops had been stationed at a military base in northern Iraq at the request of Iraq's leader since 2014, but Iraq had not made it an issue until this week, al-Jazeera reported on Wednesday. "We were asked by Prime Minister al-Abadi to help train soldiers and, at his request, we set up a training camp in Bashiqa in 2014," Erdogan was quoted as saying by the Qatar-based channel. Erdogan said Abadi "did not say a word until just now" because of developments in the region.

Man living in Iraq wins $6.4 million Oregon jackpot Posted: 09 Dec 2015 02:04 PM PST PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — An Oregon Lottery winner took more than three months to claim his $6.4 million Megabucks jackpot.

Does Islamic State have a heart? Red Cross hopes so. Posted: 09 Dec 2015 01:49 PM PST While more countries – as well as American presidential candidates – seek stronger military action against Islamic State, one group is doing just the opposite. As a neutral party representing humanitarian principles, the ICRC simply wants to aid the millions of civilians affected by the conflict and living under Islamic State rule. The ICRC, which serves as guardian of the 1949 Geneva Conventions, hopes to persuade the jihadists that they should comply with the global norms of humanitarian law.

Greek police remove 2,300 migrants from Macedonia border Posted: 09 Dec 2015 01:48 PM PST Greek police launched an operation Wednesday to remove more than 2,000 migrants gathered at the border with Macedonia, after Skopje began filtering those who can cross the frontier by nationality. The migrants -- mainly from Pakistan, Somalia, Morocco, Algeria and Bangladesh -- will be sheltered in disused Olympic stadiums, police said, adding that some 350 riot officers were mobilised at dawn for the operation. Greece and Macedonia are both on the migrant trail that has seen hundreds of thousands of people, fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and elsewhere, head to northern Europe this year after landing from Turkey in flimsy boats.

For police, shootings reinforce need for military-style gear Posted: 09 Dec 2015 01:02 PM PST Backlash over the images of protesters in Ferguson, Missouri, clashing with officers in combat gear drove an ongoing national push to scale back the militarization of police — an effort that has mostly steamrolled over concerns among law enforcement that they're losing equipment they need.

Another Paris attacker named, had been in Syria Posted: 09 Dec 2015 12:59 PM PST By Marine Pennetier and Gilbert Reilhac PARIS, WISSEMBOURG, France (Reuters) - The third man who attacked the Bataclan concert hall in Paris on Nov. 13 has been identified as a 23-year-old French national who went to Syria two years ago, according to officials involved in the inquiry into the multiple attacks on the French capital. Investigators identified Foued Mohamed-Aggad as one of three Islamist gunmen who killed 90 people at the Bataclan after his mother told them that she had been informed of his death by text message from Syria, a lawyer for the dead man's family said. Officials have yet to put names to all of eight dead gunmen and suicide bombers directly involved in last month's attacks, for which Islamic State, a militant group that controls swathes of Syria and Iraq, claimed responsibility.

Syrian opposition seeks to close ranks as army gains on ground Posted: 09 Dec 2015 12:54 PM PST By Angus McDowall RIYADH (Reuters) - Syria's fragmented opposition and rebel groups sought common ground on Wednesday ahead of planned negotiations to end a conflict which has devastated the country and drawn forces from Cold War and Middle East rivals into ever deeper combat operations. The talks in Saudi Arabia mark the most ambitious attempt yet to unify President Bashar al-Assad's enemies around a joint political platform - seen as a crucial first step to finding a peaceful end to four years of war and battling Islamic State. The powerful Kurdish YPG is among several groups excluded from the talks and those there are deeply divided over central issues like how to manage a transition from Assad and the role Islam should play in Syria.

US Willing to Provide Apache Helicopters and Advisers to Help Retake Ramadi, Ash Carter Says Posted: 09 Dec 2015 12:47 PM PST The U.S. is prepared to help the Iraqis retake Ramadi by providing Apache attack helicopters and accompanying advisers, if requested by Iraqi Prime Minister Abadi, Defense Secretary Ash Carter told the Senate Armed Services Committee today. Carter noted recent progress by Iraqi forces in retaking Ramadi, including the retaking of the Anbar Operations Center on the northern bank of the Euphrates River across from Ramadi's city center. "This is an important step, but there is still tough fighting ahead," Carter said.

IS gains and losses in Iraq and Syria Posted: 09 Dec 2015 12:34 PM PST Here is a recap of key cities and towns in Iraq and Syria seized by the Islamic State group or recaptured from the jihadists, as Iraqi forces press an offensive in Ramadi. It is the capital of Anbar, the country's largest province, which stretches from the borders with Syria, Jordan and Saudi Arabia to the western approach to the capital. On December 8, Iraqi troops retook Al-Tameem, a large area on the southwestern side of the city, with support from US-led air strikes.

Iraqi Kurd leader meets Erdogan as PM defends deployment Posted: 09 Dec 2015 12:25 PM PST Iraqi Kurdish leader Massud Barzani met Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for key talks on Wednesday as Ankara seeks to defuse a diplomatic standoff with Baghdad over the deployment of Turkish troops in northern Iraq. Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, who also met Barzani, defended the deployment of several hundred troops -- which has enraged Baghdad -- as a necessary measure to help Iraq in the fight against Islamic State jihadists.

West will remain vulnerable to IS threat: experts Posted: 09 Dec 2015 12:12 PM PST The Islamic State group has brought down a crowded airliner over Egypt, shot up Paris cafes and other soft targets, and inspired attacks like the shooting rampage last week in California. "Every European security service that I have talked to in the last year is petrified of the issue of foreign fighters, and there is almost no solution to it," said Bruce Riedel, a former CIA official who now works at the Brookings Institution. The Soufan Group, an intelligence consultancy, released a report Tuesday that said the number of foreign fighters who have travelled to Iraq and Syria since 2011 is thought to have reached 27,000 to 31,000, from at least 86 countries -- double the estimate from a year ago.

Rep. McCaul: why US is in 'highest threat environment since 9/11' Posted: 09 Dec 2015 12:02 PM PST Stating that the United States is in the highest terrorist threat environment since 9/11, the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee said Wednesday that America must make a greater effort to reach out to the Muslim community to spot early warning signs of self-radicalization. In last week's mass shooting in San Bernardino, Calif., family members had noticed Syed Rizwan Farook's radicalization, but they didn't say anything, said Rep. Michael McCaul (R) of Texas. "We have to be more engaged with the Muslim community," said Representative McCaul, speaking at a breakfast for reporters hosted by the Monitor.

White House: Obama undecided on use of attack helicopters in Iraq Posted: 09 Dec 2015 11:48 AM PST U.S. President Barack Obama has not decided whether to approve the use of attack helicopters in operations against the Islamic State militant group in Iraq, the White House said on Wednesday. Earlier on Wednesday Defense Secretary Ash Carter told lawmakers at a congressional hearing that the United States was prepared to deploy advisers and attack helicopters if Iraq requested them, in an effort to help it "finish the job" of retaking the city of Ramadi from Islamic State.

Singapore sees Islamist militancy 'clear, present danger' for Asia Posted: 09 Dec 2015 11:46 AM PST By David Brunnstrom WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Singapore sees a "clear and present danger" to Asia from Islamist militancy, especially from the threat of groups linking up after pledging allegiance to Islamic State, its defense minister Ng Eng Hen said on Wednesday. A day after signing a defense cooperation agreement with the United States that covers trans-national militancy, Ng said intelligence sharing was key to dealing with the issue.

Father of Paris attacker 'would have killed son' if he knew of plot Posted: 09 Dec 2015 11:37 AM PST A third gunman involved in last month's massacre at a Paris concert hall was identified Wednesday as a Frenchman who had visited Syria, with his father saying he "would have killed him" if he had known his plans. Foued Mohamed-Aggad, 23, blew himself up in the bloodiest of the attacks on the French capital -- at the Bataclan concert venue, where 90 young music lovers were killed. "I would have killed him myself beforehand," his father, Said Mohamed-Aggad, told AFP after French Prime Minister Manuel Valls announced the name of the assailant.

In IS stronghold, residents trapped in 'sealed casket' as Iraqi forces close in Posted: 09 Dec 2015 11:31 AM PST By Ahmed Rasheed BAGHDAD (Reuters) - As Iraqi forces close in on the western city of Ramadi, thousands of civilians are effectively being held hostage inside by Islamic State militants who want to use them as human shields. Iraqi forces cut the hardline group's last supply line into Ramadi in November, surrounding the city and making it almost impossible for the militants to send in reinforcements. All said conditions inside had deteriorated to their worst since Islamic State overran it earlier this year.

Singapore minister warns of Islamic State threat in SE Asia Posted: 09 Dec 2015 11:11 AM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — Singapore's defense minister said Wednesday that Islamic State fighters pose a "clear and present danger" to Southeast Asia as they return from Syria and Iraq with a mission to establish a caliphate.

US urges more anti-IS efforts, may back Iraq with helicopters Posted: 09 Dec 2015 10:55 AM PST Washington called Wednesday for allies to intensify efforts against the Islamic State group and expressed willingness to support Iraqi forces with attack helicopters as they battle the jihadists in Ramadi. Baghdad's forces have been fighting for months to close in around Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province, and took a large part of the key city on Tuesday. "The international community -- including our allies and partners -- has to step up before another attack like Paris," US defence chief Ashton Carter told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Wednesday, referring to a militant assault with guns and bombs that killed 130 people.

Syria rebels begin leaving Homs under truce deal Posted: 09 Dec 2015 10:32 AM PST Syrian rebels began evacuating the last opposition-held district in Homs on Wednesday, paving the way for President Bashar al-Assad's regime to take full control of the country's third-largest city. Hundreds of Syrian rebels and civilians were leaving the Waer district under a rare local ceasefire agreed with the regime at the start of December. Some 2,000 rebels and their families will abandon Waer in Homs -- once dubbed the "capital" of Syria's revolution -- to travel to other opposition-held areas, after enduring a three-year siege that saw the district heavily shelled.

AP EXPLAINS: The rise of German Chancellor Angela Merkel Posted: 09 Dec 2015 10:27 AM PST BERLIN (AP) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been named Time magazine's Person of the Year, just a few weeks after she marked 10 years at the helm of Europe's biggest economic power. Merkel, 61, is the European Union's longest-serving head of government and has been a serial winner of Forbes magazine's title of world's most powerful woman. She's the first woman chosen as Person of the Year since 1986 and only the fourth since 1927. Here's a brief look at some key highlights of her career:

Turkey urges citizens to leave Iraq, excluding Iraqi Kurdistan: foreign ministry Posted: 09 Dec 2015 10:05 AM PST Turkey on Wednesday called on its citizens to leave all areas of Iraq, excluding Iraqi Kurdistan, due to increased security risks, the foreign ministry said. "The scope of our travel warning to Iraq has expanded to include all provinces except for Dohuk, Arbil and Sulaymaniyah," all of which are in the northern region of Iraqi Kurdistan, the ministry said in a statement posted on its website. Ankara cited increasing threats targeting Turkish companies recently, as well as declarations encouraging violence, abduction and attacks.

Text to mom announcing death reveals 3rd Bataclan attacker Posted: 09 Dec 2015 09:44 AM PST PARIS (AP) — It took a text message from Syria to a mother in northeast France to reveal the identity of the third killer at the Bataclan concert venue in Paris: Your son died as a martyr Nov. 13.

As House votes to restrict visa waivers, polls find support for new limits Posted: 09 Dec 2015 09:27 AM PST As lawmakers in the US House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to limit a visa waiver program that lets citizens of 38 countries come to the United States without a visa for up to 90 days, a new poll finds just over half of Americans worry about consequences of immigration from the Middle East. On Tuesday, the House voted 407-19 to require anyone who has been in Iraq and Syria in the last five years to obtain a visa before entering the US, along with citizens of those countries and any other nation that is deemed to be a terrorist hotspot. The move comes as pressure mounts on lawmakers to respond to a series of terrorist attacks linked to the Islamic State militant group, including a mass shooting in San Bernadino, Calif., by a couple where the wife – who had reportedly pledged allegiance to the Islamic State – had entered the country on a so-called fiancée visa. The recent attacks in Paris, for which the Islamic State has claimed responsibility, were carried out by citizens of Belgium and France, which are included in the US visa waiver program.

The Latest: UN: nearly 770,000 people enter Greece in 2015 Posted: 09 Dec 2015 09:22 AM PST ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The Latest in the influx of people into Europe. All times local:

Turkish PM accuses Russia of 'ethnic cleansing' in Syria Posted: 09 Dec 2015 09:10 AM PST By Nick Tattersall ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkey's prime minister accused Russia on Wednesday of attempted "ethnic cleansing" in northern Syria, saying Moscow was trying to drive out the local Turkmen and Sunni Muslim populations to protect its military interests in the region. Ahmet Davutoglu's comments could further harm strained relations between Moscow and Ankara, already at their worst in recent memory after Turkish forces downed a Russian warplane near the Turkish-Syrian border late last month. "Russia is trying to make ethnic cleansing in northern Latakia to force (out) all Turkmen and Sunni population who do not have good relations with the regime," Davutoglu told foreign reporters in Istanbul.

Turkish army hits Kurdish militant targets in northern Iraq overnight Posted: 09 Dec 2015 09:10 AM PST Turkish warplanes struck Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militant targets in northern Iraq overnight and a policeman was killed in southeastern Turkey during clashes with the group. Turkish jets hit targets in the Qandil, Hakurk, Zap and Avasin Baysan areas of northern Iraq, targeting storage units and shelters for the militants, the Turkish army said on Wednesday. The region is part of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish entity known as Kurdistan.

Iraqis eye next steps in Ramadi as IS claims Baghdad bombing Posted: 09 Dec 2015 09:08 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi forces were preparing to push further into the center of the Islamic State-held city of Ramadi as the Sunni militant group claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing in Baghdad that killed 11 people on Wednesday.

US visas get new scrutiny after California, Paris attacks Posted: 09 Dec 2015 09:06 AM PST Visas used by foreigners to travel to the United States are getting new scrutiny in the wake of shooting massacres in California and France.

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