Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Time to "turn the page" and help middle class, Obama to say
• Iowa Sen. Ernst promises GOP focus on Americans' concerns
• Obama in State of the Union: America is turning the page
• California two-year colleges may soon offer bargain bachelor's degrees
• Obama to say US turning the page on 'vicious recession'
• Obama to call for new war powers to fight IS: excerpts
• Obama to challenge Republicans to back tax hikes in big speech
• Obama to say U.S. must reshape economy to help middle class: excerpts
• U.S. Wages War on ISIS and al-Qaeda with Fewer Resources
• 'Sniper' success reveals power of conservative audience
• IT'S TIME TO BE PRACTICAL ABOUT MULTICULTURALISM
• Seth Rogen versus Sarah Palin: Is 'American Sniper' pro-war or patriotic?
• Canadian soldiers directing air strikes in Iraq
• Paris to sue Fox News for reports on Muslim 'no-go zones'
• Weakness of Yemen's government undermines US terror fight
• With Yemen in Chaos, al-Qaeda Terrorists Are Unleashed
• ISIS reportedly kills 13 boys for watching soccer: Is ISIS adopting Taliban tactics?
• Some in jury pool say they could be fair in marathon trial
• Yemen's almost coup a sign of more trouble to come
• Japan weighs ransom in Islamic State threat to kill hostages
• Memorial brings recognition to Iran's Jewish 'martyrs'
• Spain hopes Iran will join fight against Islamic extremism
• US in Cuba: 'Imperialist' mission to become embassy
• Japanese hostages documented their travels in Syria before IS abduction
• Why Assad No Longer 'Has to Go'
• IS threatens to kill Japan hostages, Tokyo vows not to give in
• IS executing 'educated women' in new wave of horror says UN
• Canada's Harper lied about ground combat in Iraq: opposition
• US charges two Yemenis over Afghanistan attacks
• Can Iraq hold together? How the new Shiite premier is doing.
• Attacks kill 8 people in Iraq
• Summary of Tuesday's actions by Supreme Court
• Syria regime air strikes kill at least 39
• 'Dozens' killed and wounded in airstrike on Syria market
• Norway orders house arrest after release of jailed mullah
• Special Report: For Islamic State, wheat season sows seeds of discontent
• Halliburton, Baker Hughes to lay off thousands as oil slumps
• A look at the hostages believed held by Islamic State group
• U.S. top court rejects appeals by Halliburton, KBR over conduct overseas

Time to "turn the page" and help middle class, Obama to say Posted: 20 Jan 2015 04:44 PM PST By Steve Holland and Jeff Mason WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will challenge a skeptical Republican-led Congress on Tuesday to back tax increases on the wealthy to help lift up middle-class Americans in a State of the Union speech that will outline his vision for his last two years in office. On foreign policy, Obama will call on lawmakers to pass a new authorization of military force against Islamic State militants to replace powers that were given to President George W. Bush to prosecute the Iraq war. He will say the U.S.-led effort to stop Islamic State from advancing in Iraq and Syria is working without dragging the United States into another ground war in the Middle East. Obama will credit his "middle-class economics" for a surge in the U.S. economy and say it is time to "turn the page" from recession and war and to focus on growth for all, including the middle class, according to excerpts of his 9 p.m. EST (0200 GMT Wednesday) televised speech released by the White House.

Iowa Sen. Ernst promises GOP focus on Americans' concerns Posted: 20 Jan 2015 04:38 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans now controlling Congress will focus on people's concerns about jobs and health care and steer the country away from President Barack Obama's failed policies, the newly minted senator delivering her party's official response to the State of Union address said Tuesday.

Obama in State of the Union: America is turning the page Posted: 20 Jan 2015 04:35 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama urged the nation Tuesday night to "turn the page" on years of economic troubles, terrorism and lengthy wars, arguing that his presidency had ushered in an era of smarter American leadership and a growing U.S. economy.

California two-year colleges may soon offer bargain bachelor's degrees Posted: 20 Jan 2015 04:18 PM PST California's community colleges hope to begin offering bachelor's degrees for about $2,500 a year under a pilot program that won preliminary approval on Tuesday. The program aimed at reducing the cost of higher education in the most populous U.S. state got initial approval from the California Community Colleges Board of Governors at a meeting in the state capital of Sacramento. "These colleges are embarking on a new mission ... that will expand opportunities in public higher education," California Community Colleges Chancellor Brice W. Harris said. The course offerings must still be vetted by officials at the California State University and University of California systems before coming back to the community college board in March.

Obama to say US turning the page on 'vicious recession' Posted: 20 Jan 2015 04:06 PM PST President Barack Obama will draw a line under years of economic hardship during his State of the Union address Tuesday, directly challenging his Republican foes to help the middle class. Facing a hostile Republican-controlled Congress, an emboldened Obama will declare that the United States is ready to "turn the page" on difficult years that have also taken a toll on his political standing.

Obama to call for new war powers to fight IS: excerpts Posted: 20 Jan 2015 03:56 PM PST US President Barack Obama on Tuesday was to urge lawmakers to endow him with new war powers to defeat Islamic State militants, warning the battle would be long but eventually successful. "In Iraq and Syria, American leadership -– including our military power -– is stopping ISIL's advance," the commander-in-chief was to tell US lawmakers.

Obama to challenge Republicans to back tax hikes in big speech Posted: 20 Jan 2015 03:45 PM PST By Steve Holland and Jeff Mason WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will challenge a skeptical Republican-led Congress on Tuesday to back tax increases on the wealthy to help lift up middle-class Americans in a State of the Union speech that will outline his vision for his last two years in office. According to excerpts released by the White House of his 9 p.m. EST televised speech, Obama will say it is time to convert a recent surge in the U.S. economy into improvements for the middle class, many of whom are still experiencing hard times. Obama is proposing tax increases of $320 billion over the next 10 years to pay for expanded tax credits and educational benefits for the middle class.

Obama to say U.S. must reshape economy to help middle class: excerpts Posted: 20 Jan 2015 03:36 PM PST President Barack Obama will tell Americans on Tuesday that the United States must reshape its economy to help the middle class and "turn the page" on recession and war, according to excerpts of his State of the Union speech provided by the White House. "At this moment – with a growing economy, shrinking deficits, bustling industry, and booming energy production – we have risen from recession freer to write our own future than any other nation on Earth," he will say, according to the excerpts. "It's now up to us to choose who we want to be over the next fifteen years, and for decades to come." Obama will also say that the United States is stopping the advance of Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria, but that the process will take time, and he will call on Congress to pass a resolution authorizing force against the group. "If we don't act, we'll leave our nation and our economy vulnerable. If we do, we can continue to protect the technologies that have unleashed untold opportunities for people around the globe," he will say.

U.S. Wages War on ISIS and al-Qaeda with Fewer Resources Posted: 20 Jan 2015 03:17 PM PST President Obama's State of the Union address Tuesday night will be dominated by his tax and spending proposals to help the middle class. In many ways, 2014 was supposed to be a transition away from a decade of brutal land warfare in Afghanistan and Iraq and back to a less challenging period with eased deployments, smaller forces and withdrawal from the Middle East and other hotspots. Instead, the military was thrust into dealing with ISIS in Syria and Iraq, the Islamic extremists' attacks against civilians in Paris, Sydney and Ottawa, the Ebola epidemic in Western Africa, and the fallout from Russia's invasion of eastern Ukraine. Many in the Pentagon are fretting about fewer budget resources and the threat of another round of across-the-board cuts at a time when the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines all complain about being stretched dangerously thin.

'Sniper' success reveals power of conservative audience Posted: 20 Jan 2015 03:15 PM PST NEW YORK (AP) — Empty seats were hard to come by at Clint Eastwood's "American Sniper" over the holiday weekend, where the R-rated Iraq War drama — all words seldom attached to "blockbuster" — rolled to the kind of runaway success that makes Hollywood sit up and take notice.

IT'S TIME TO BE PRACTICAL ABOUT MULTICULTURALISM Posted: 20 Jan 2015 03:01 PM PST Following the murders in Paris at the Charlie Hebdo magazine and the kosher supermarket, one could hear the comforting sound of tens of thousands of footsteps marching in enraged opposition to the terrorists. This old struggle came up anew this week when a well-meaning Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal spoke in London about Islamic "no-go" zones in England where the British police dare not go. In fact, he was slightly wrong on the "no-go" thing, which is more characteristic of France's huge "grands ensembles," reminiscent of Chicago's massive, and now demolished, public housing. He should have spoken about how radical, anti-British Muslims are working to take over the public schools in Birmingham, since the "Trojan Horse" scandal is in the London papers every day, and about how Pakistani men in Rotherham had lured away 1,400 teenaged English girls, "groomed" them with liquor and drugs, and turned them into prostitutes.

Seth Rogen versus Sarah Palin: Is 'American Sniper' pro-war or patriotic? Posted: 20 Jan 2015 02:55 PM PST Is "American Sniper" a hugely divisive American phenomenon?

Canadian soldiers directing air strikes in Iraq Posted: 20 Jan 2015 02:40 PM PST TORONTO (AP) — Canadian special forces in northern Iraq have been helping Kurdish peshmerga fighters by directing coalition airstrikes against Islamic State extremists — work generally considered risky because it means they are close to the battle against the group.

Paris to sue Fox News for reports on Muslim 'no-go zones' Posted: 20 Jan 2015 02:31 PM PST The city of Paris said Tuesday it plans to sue US chain Fox News for reports that there were "no-go zones" in the French capital that police and non-Muslims avoid. The reports in the wake of the Islamist attacks in Paris two weeks ago have been widely derided and prompted Fox to issue an on-air apology for suggesting parts of Paris and the English city of Birmingham were run under Islamic Shariah law. "A complaint will be filed in the coming days," despite the apology, said a source at Paris city hall. The Fox reports spawned much derision online and saw local news show Le Petit Journal send fake correspondents Mike and John to report on these so-called dangerous areas.

Weakness of Yemen's government undermines US terror fight Posted: 20 Jan 2015 02:22 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — The violent push Tuesday by Houthi rebels against the American-backed government in Yemen is undermining military and intelligence operations against al-Qaida's Yemen-based affiliate, which made its reach felt in this month's deadly Paris attacks, U.S. officials say.

With Yemen in Chaos, al-Qaeda Terrorists Are Unleashed Posted: 20 Jan 2015 02:15 PM PST American diplomats in Yemen were fired upon at a checkpoint in Sana'a, the capital city of Yemen, CNN reported Tuesday. No one was hurt. The situation in Yemen escalated into violence this week when Houthi militiamen launched a coup against the Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, inciting bloody clashes that killed eight people and injured scores of others on Monday alone. The Houthis are a religious Zaidi Shia movement with an armed wing, similar to the Sadr movement in Iraq and Hezbollah in Lebanon. The Houthis have been involved in a decade-long insurgency in northern Yemen, where the population of 25 million is roughly 60 percent Sunnis and 40 percent Shiites.

ISIS reportedly kills 13 boys for watching soccer: Is ISIS adopting Taliban tactics? Posted: 20 Jan 2015 01:49 PM PST The report of boys killed for watching soccer comes on the heels of images the Islamic State released last week that depicted ISIS security personnel throwing two individuals to their deaths from a tower because they were "convicted" of being homosexual, according to a report from the International Business Times. Video beheadings, public executions, and torture have come to characterize life under the Islamic State in Western media. The Taliban, who ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, quickly imposed strict sharia, banned political parties and "killed indiscriminately" during their rise to power after establishing control in Kandahar, Afghanistan in 1994, according to Slate. As a result, thousands of members of religious minorities were killed during the five-year rule of the Taliban, according to Oxfam.

Some in jury pool say they could be fair in marathon trial Posted: 20 Jan 2015 01:47 PM PST BOSTON (AP) — As jury selection resumed Tuesday in the highly anticipated terror trial of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the judge appeared to find what until now has been in scarce supply: prospective jurors who say they can be impartial.

Yemen's almost coup a sign of more trouble to come Posted: 20 Jan 2015 12:50 PM PST Last September, the Zaydi-Shiite Houthi movement seized control of most of the capital, but under a power-sharing deal left in place the country's president, Abdo Rabbu Mansour Hadi, and his government. President Hadi had been elevated to the post as part of a deal brokered by Saudi Arabia and other Gulf monarchies following a popular uprising in 2011 that eventually forced out dictator Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Japan weighs ransom in Islamic State threat to kill hostages Posted: 20 Jan 2015 12:38 PM PST CAIRO (AP) — The Islamic State group threatened to kill two Japanese hostages within 72 hours, demanding a $200 million ransom in a video posted online Tuesday that showed a knife-brandishing masked militant standing over the two kneeling captives.

Memorial brings recognition to Iran's Jewish 'martyrs' Posted: 20 Jan 2015 12:19 PM PST It seems incongruous in Iran, where politicians chant "Death to Israel" and the Israeli flag is often burned, but a new memorial in Tehran is bringing recognition to the country's "Jewish martyrs". The memorial has been raised in the three-hectare (eight-acre) Jewish cemetery in south Tehran -- a striking reminder of a minority faith whose more than 1,000-year heritage in Iran dwarfs the comparably short 35 years of the Islamic republic. For leaders of Iran's small Jewish community, the memorial is a welcome sign of openness from authorities despite continued concerns over discrimination.

Spain hopes Iran will join fight against Islamic extremism Posted: 20 Jan 2015 12:06 PM PST Spain said Tuesday it hopes Iran will join the global fight against Islamic extremism if Tehran reaches an agreement with world powers over its disputed nuclear programme. "Iran is critically important in the region," Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo said on the sidelines of a business forum in Madrid. "I hope that if a solution is found for the Iranian nuclear issue, Iran could join the fight" against a phenomenon "which threatens all Muslims, be they Shia or Sunni," he added.

US in Cuba: 'Imperialist' mission to become embassy Posted: 20 Jan 2015 11:53 AM PST The high-fenced US Interests Section on Havana's postcard-pretty seafront was a symbol of the Cold War friction that is now finally dissipating as it prepares to become an embassy. Transforming the concrete and glass mission into an embassy will be a central part of historic negotiations between US and Cuban officials this week aimed at restoring diplomatic relations. Guarded by stone-faced Cuban police officers, the building that was built in 1953 lies along the famous Malecon seawall, a favorite meeting spot for locals and tourists alike. The United States closed its embassy in 1961, when diplomatic relations with Fidel Castro's revolutionary government broke off, and reopened it as an interests section in 1977 under then US president Jimmy Carter.

Japanese hostages documented their travels in Syria before IS abduction Posted: 20 Jan 2015 11:51 AM PST Haruna Yukawa and Kenji Goto of Japan have been captured and threatened with death at the hands of the Islamic State. But who are they, and what compelled them to travel to Syria?

Why Assad No Longer 'Has to Go' Posted: 20 Jan 2015 11:48 AM PST The future of Syria must be determined by its people, but President Bashar al-Assad is standing in their way. For the sake of the Syrian people, the time has come for President Assad to step aside. The statement came two years before the Assad regime nearly became an American target after its forces were widely accused of crossing the "red line" of using chemical weapons, and three years before a United Nations report placed the death toll in the Syrian civil war at 191,000. It is time for President Assad, the Assad regime, to put their people first and to think about the consequences of their actions, which are attracting more and more terrorists to Syria, basically because of their efforts to remove Assad.

IS threatens to kill Japan hostages, Tokyo vows not to give in Posted: 20 Jan 2015 11:27 AM PST The Islamic State group threatened in a video Tuesday to kill two Japanese hostages within 72 hours unless it receives a $200 million ransom, but Tokyo vowed it would not bow to "terrorism". Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, in Jerusalem on the latest leg of a Middle East tour, demanded the jihadists immediately free the two hostages unharmed. He flew home several hours early to take charge of efforts to secure their release after meeting Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, who described as "despicable" the threat against the abducted men. IS has murdered five Westerners since August, but this is the first time the extremist group -- which has seized swathes of Syria and neighbouring Iraq -- has threatened Japanese captives.

IS executing 'educated women' in new wave of horror says UN Posted: 20 Jan 2015 11:11 AM PST The UN on Tuesday decried numerous executions of civilians in Iraq by the Islamic State group, warning that educated women appeared to be especially at risk. The jihadist group is showing a "monstrous disregard for human life" in the areas it controls in Iraq, the UN human rights office said. The group, which controls large swathes of territory in Iraq and in neighbouring war-ravaged Syria, last week published pictures of the "crucifixions" of two men accused of being bandits, and of a woman being stoned to death, allegedly for adultery. Numerous other women have also reportedly been executed recently in IS-controlled areas, including Mosul, spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters.

Canada's Harper lied about ground combat in Iraq: opposition Posted: 20 Jan 2015 11:05 AM PST Canada's opposition leader accused Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Tuesday of having lied when he promised no ground combat alongside airstrikes against the Islamic State group in Iraq. The accusation comes after Canadian special forces exchanged gunfire with Islamic State fighters in the Mideast country in recent days, in the first confirmed ground battle between Western troops and IS. The Canadians came under mortar and machine gun fire while training Iraqi troops near front lines and shot back in what Canadian special forces commander Brigadier General Michael Rouleau described as self-defense, killing the IS fighters.

US charges two Yemenis over Afghanistan attacks Posted: 20 Jan 2015 10:46 AM PST The United States has charged two Yemeni nationals with alleged links to Al-Qaeda over attacks carried out on American forces in Afghanistan, the Justice Department said Tuesday. "There is no escape from the reach of our law for violent terrorists, especially if they target our military," said Loretta Lynch, US attorney for the eastern district of New York. Saddiq al-Abbadi, 36, and Ali Alvi, 30, were arrested on a US warrant in Saudi Arabia for conspiracy to murder Americans abroad and providing material support to Al-Qaeda. They were extradited to New York where they face trial and life behind bars.

Can Iraq hold together? How the new Shiite premier is doing. Posted: 20 Jan 2015 10:42 AM PST It shows him shaking hands with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who has promised inclusive rule in a country at war with itself. Mr. Fahdawi, a Sunni tribal leader, asked the Shiite premier for "good quality" weapons – and more and better-armed Iraqi troops – to help his tribe repel Islamic State fighters in Sunni lands in western Iraq. Four months after Abadi took office aiming to mend ties between the Shiite-led government and Iraq's Kurdish and Sunni minorities, the failure to provide weapons to Sunni tribes willing to fight IS is symbolic of the deep sectarian distrust that still permeates Iraqi politics. The challenge facing Abadi was always going to be herculean: how to overcome years – even decades – of sectarian divisions in Iraq, made worse by the unabashedly Shiite-first policies of his predecessor, Nouri al-Maliki.

Attacks kill 8 people in Iraq Posted: 20 Jan 2015 10:11 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — Two bombings targeting Shiite neighborhoods killed eight people in Baghdad on Tuesday as authorities found 15 bodies of Kurdish fighters in a mass grave in an area once controlled by the Islamic State group.

Summary of Tuesday's actions by Supreme Court Posted: 20 Jan 2015 10:04 AM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court handed down opinions in three cases Tuesday and declined to hear arguments in dozens more. Among the highlights, the court:

Syria regime air strikes kill at least 39 Posted: 20 Jan 2015 09:47 AM PST Syrian government air strikes on Tuesday killed at least 39 people, more than half of them civilians, in two main battlegrounds in the north of the country, a monitor said. "The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has documented the deaths of at least 27 people... in air strikes targeting the outskirts of Tal Hamis," said the Britain-based organisation. Speaking to AFP, Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said nine of those killed had been identified by his group as civilians. "More of the dead may be civilians too, but we have not yet been able to confirm that," Abdel Rahman said.

'Dozens' killed and wounded in airstrike on Syria market Posted: 20 Jan 2015 09:15 AM PST BEIRUT (AP) — An airstrike on a crowded market in a Syrian village controlled by the Islamic State group killed dozens of people on Tuesday, activists said.

Norway orders house arrest after release of jailed mullah Posted: 20 Jan 2015 09:09 AM PST HELSINKI (AP) — Norwegian police have ordered house arrest for an Iraqi-born cleric who is to be released this weekend after serving time for making death threats against politicians and fellow immigrants.

Special Report: For Islamic State, wheat season sows seeds of discontent Posted: 20 Jan 2015 09:07 AM PST By Maggie Fick ARBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - As the season for wheat planting in Iraq wound down early last month, farmers in areas under the control of Sunni militant group Islamic State grew worried. More than two dozen farmers told Reuters they had not planted the normal amount of seed, because they could not access their land, did not have the proper fertilizers or adequate fuel, or because they had no guarantees that Islamic State would buy their crop as Baghdad normally does. The breakaway al Qaeda group, which declared an Islamic caliphate across parts of Syria and Iraq last summer, has killed thousands and forced hundreds of thousands from their homes.

Halliburton, Baker Hughes to lay off thousands as oil slumps Posted: 20 Jan 2015 09:05 AM PST Oilfield service providers Baker Hughes Inc and Halliburton Co plan to cut thousands of jobs as drilling activity slows further due to a steep fall in crude oil prices. Global oil prices have tumbled almost 60 percent since June, hitting five-year lows as growing production and tepid global demand has caused a supply glut and prompted oil producers to scale back spending. "We expect our headcount adjustments to be in line with our primary competitors," Halliburton's Chief Operating Officer Jeffrey Miller said on a post-earnings call on Tuesday, without giving a specific number. Baker Hughes, which is being acquired by Halliburton in a near-$35 billion deal, said earlier in the day it would lay off 7,000 employees.

A look at the hostages believed held by Islamic State group Posted: 20 Jan 2015 09:04 AM PST BEIRUT (AP) — A list of foreign hostages believed held by the Islamic State group and some of those who have been released, reportedly in exchange for ransom money:

U.S. top court rejects appeals by Halliburton, KBR over conduct overseas Posted: 20 Jan 2015 08:18 AM PST By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed lawsuits to move forward against government contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan by declining to hear appeals filed by KBR Inc and Halliburton Co. The high court left intact appeals court rulings against the two companies in three different cases. One lawsuit was brought by the family of U.S. Staff Sergeant Ryan Maseth, who died in 2008 after being electrocuted in his barracks in Iraq. The third lawsuit was brought by soldiers from both the U.S. and Britain who say they were exposed to a potentially dangerous chemical, sodium dichromate, while serving at the Qarmat Ali water treatment facility in southern Iraq.

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