Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• IS claims beheading of second Japanese captive
• Video: Islamic State group beheads Japanese journalist
• Islamic State says it has beheaded second Japanese hostage Goto
• The Life of Kenji Goto
• Paris, Rabat put differences aside, resume judicial cooperation
• Islamic State fighters admit defeat in Syrian town of Kobani
• Why Paris terrorist wore a GoPro
• U.S. general says Syrian town of Kobani taken from Islamic State
• Iraq's PM pledges hard line against alleged militia abuses
• Officials say bombings kill 14 people around Iraq's capital
• Pile of daunting challenges ahead for next defense secretary
• Things to know about the Boston Marathon bombing trial
• Morocco, France mend long spat, restore legal collaboration
• Kurds retake oil facility in north Iraq, 15 workers still missing
• Iraq Kurdish forces retake oil field, villages from IS
• Why Michelle Obama praises 'American Sniper'
• Iraqi libraries ransacked by Islamic State group in Mosul
• 5 given preliminary charges over jihadi network in France
• In northern Iraq, Kurds struggle with IS booby traps
• Bahrain revokes nationality of 72 on security grounds
• U.S. reports 27 more strikes against Islamic State
• List of Asian Cup champions
• Soccer-Asian Cup champions 1956-2015
• Egyptian interior ministry employee killed in Sinai
• Japan says hostage negotiations with militants 'deadlocked'
• White House grapples with fraught terrorism language
• CIA, Israel plotted senior Hezbollah commander's killing: report
• Chowing Down on Wings This Weekend? Here’s What Happens to the Rest of the Bird
• U.S. ground troops could be needed in Iraq: Chuck Hagel
• Stocks sag at the close; January finishes on weak note

IS claims beheading of second Japanese captive Posted: 31 Jan 2015 04:34 PM PST The Islamic State group said in a video Saturday it had beheaded a second Japanese hostage, drawing outrage from Tokyo and condemnation from Washington. Japanese journalist Kenji Goto is seen kneeling next to a standing masked man who speaks with a British accent and blames the Japanese government for his "slaughter". The executioner addresses Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, saying the murder of Goto would mark the beginning of "the nightmare for Japan". Goto's killing, he said, was the result of "reckless" decisions by the Japanese government.

Video: Islamic State group beheads Japanese journalist Posted: 31 Jan 2015 04:17 PM PST TOKYO (AP) — Japan condemned with outrage and horror on Sunday an online video that purported to show an Islamic State group militant beheading Japanese journalist Kenji Goto.

Islamic State says it has beheaded second Japanese hostage Goto Posted: 31 Jan 2015 03:51 PM PST By Sylvia Westall and William Mallard BEIRUT/TOKYO (Reuters) - Islamic State militants said on Saturday they had beheaded a second Japanese hostage, journalist Kenji Goto, after the failure of international efforts to secure his release through a prisoner swap. The hardline Islamist group, which controls large parts of Syria and Iraq, released a video which seemed to show the beheaded body of Goto and threatened further attacks on Japanese targets. Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said the video appeared to be genuine. Islamic State had said Goto, 47, was held along with a Jordanian pilot.

The Life of Kenji Goto Posted: 31 Jan 2015 02:55 PM PST A video purportedly released by the Islamic State on Saturday appeared to show the beheading of Kenji Goto, a Japanese journalist whom militants had captured in Syria and held hostage. The death of Goto came one week after ISIS executed Haruna Yukawa, a fellow Japanese citizen who had traveled to Syria as a private security contractor. The two murders followed ISIS demands of $200 million in ransom from the Japanese government, as well as the release of Sajida Mubarak al-Rishawi, a woman imprisoned in Jordan for her role in a 2005 failed suicide bombing. Goto's kidnapping elicited much interest in Japan.

Paris, Rabat put differences aside, resume judicial cooperation Posted: 31 Jan 2015 01:44 PM PST France and Morocco are to resume judicial cooperation after a year-long row, according to a joint statement Saturday, in a move that will help French investigators gather intelligence on terror suspects. The agreement will allow the two countries -- each of which has an unknown number of nationals believed to be fighting with the Islamic State group in Syria and Iraq -- to resume working together on security issues, seen as critical following Islamist attacks in Paris earlier this month in which 17 people died. Morocco broke off cooperation with France in late February 2014 after French authorities attempted to question the head of Morocco's DGST domestic intelligence service, Abdellatif Hammouchi, over torture allegations while he was on a visit to Paris.

Islamic State fighters admit defeat in Syrian town of Kobani Posted: 31 Jan 2015 01:30 PM PST BEIRUT (AP) — The Islamic State group has acknowledged for the first time that its fighters have been defeated in the Syrian town of Kobani and vowed to attack the town again.

Why Paris terrorist wore a GoPro Posted: 31 Jan 2015 12:27 PM PST The information, first released by CNN, supports an earlier report by French magazine L'Express that Coulibaly used a GoPro camera to record seven minutes of his raid. Coulibaly killed four people and held others hostage at the kosher supermarket on Jan. 9, shortly after the attack on French magazine Charlie Hebdo occurred. Coulibaly was carrying the GoPro camera on his torso during the January 9 attack and subsequent standoff, the source told L'Express.

U.S. general says Syrian town of Kobani taken from Islamic State Posted: 31 Jan 2015 12:14 PM PST Kurdish ground forces, helped by U.S. and allied air support, have retaken the Syrian town of Kobani from Islamic State militants, U.S. Lieutenant-General James Terry said on Saturday. Supporting what Kurdish forces said earlier this week, Terry, commander of the Combined Joint Task Force that has been leading air strikes against Islamic State, said in a statement issued by the U.S. military: "Kurdish ground forces, supported by our air component, were successful in retaking the town of Kobani." A monitoring group and Syrian state media reported Kurdish fighters took full control of Kobani on Monday, but on Tuesday a U.S. official said the town on the Turkish border had not been fully retaken.

Iraq's PM pledges hard line against alleged militia abuses Posted: 31 Jan 2015 11:54 AM PST Iraq's prime minister blamed "criminals" on Saturday for alleged mass executions, following reports that dozens of civilians were killed by Shi'ite militias in Diyala province. "It's not permitted for people to take the law into their own hands and punish others whenever they want to settle scores," Haider al-Abadi told a gathering of Sunni and Shi'ite religious and political leaders in Baghdad. Abadi, a moderate Shi'ite Islamist who has sought reconciliation between Sunnis and Shi'ites, had called on Wednesday for an investigation into accusations that Shi'ite militias systematically executed at least 72 people in the village of Barwanah. Accusations of such mass atrocities by Shi'ite militias threaten to undermine Abadi's efforts to win Sunni Muslim support to battle Islamic State, which grabbed large parts of northern and western Iraq last year.

Officials say bombings kill 14 people around Iraq's capital Posted: 31 Jan 2015 11:16 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — A series of bombings in and around the Iraqi capital killed 14 people Saturday and a senior Kurdish commander died in clashes with Islamic State militants in northern Iraq.

Pile of daunting challenges ahead for next defense secretary Posted: 31 Jan 2015 11:14 AM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — As defense secretary, Ashton Carter would face a daunting pile of problems at home and abroad. And then there are the unforeseen crises, the ones that explode onto a Pentagon chief's agenda without warning.

Things to know about the Boston Marathon bombing trial Posted: 31 Jan 2015 10:24 AM PST BOSTON (AP) — Jury selection in the federal death penalty trial of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is heading into its second month as Judge George O'Toole Jr. continues the process of questioning prospective jurors individually to find 18 people who can be fair and impartial. Here is a look at what's happened so far and a look ahead:

Morocco, France mend long spat, restore legal collaboration Posted: 31 Jan 2015 09:39 AM PST RABAT, Morocco (AP) — After a year-long rupture, France and Morocco restored their cooperation in legal matters on Saturday, a move allowing closer counterterrorism cooperation.

Kurds retake oil facility in north Iraq, 15 workers still missing Posted: 31 Jan 2015 09:16 AM PST By Mustafa Mahmoud KIRKUK, Iraq (Reuters) - Kurdish peshmerga forces retook a small crude oil station near the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk which Islamic State insurgents seized earlier on Saturday, but the fate of 15 employees remained unclear. Two officials from the state-run North Oil Co told Reuters the militants had seized a crude oil separation unit in Khabbaz on Saturday morning and said 15 oil workers were missing after the company lost contact with them. One of the officials and a Kurdish military source said the peshmerga forces had regained control of the facility on Saturday evening and were combing it for explosives. We lost contact and now the workers might be taken hostage," an engineer from the North Oil Co told Reuters, using a derogatory acronym for Islamic State.

Iraq Kurdish forces retake oil field, villages from IS Posted: 31 Jan 2015 08:54 AM PST Iraqi Kurdish forces and police retook an oil field in Kirkuk province Saturday that was seized by the Islamic State group overnight, and freed 24 workers who had been taken captive, officers said. "Peshmerga forces and police cleared the Khubbaz (oil) field a little while ago and were able to enter it after surrounding it for hours," police Brigadier General Sarhad Qader said of the fighting, adding that they also retook eight villages. IS had moved into the oil field Friday night and seized 24 workers, who were freed after they withdrew, peshmerga Major General Westa Rasul said. During the fighting on Saturday, a sniper killed peshmerga Major General Hussein Mansur, Colonel Kawa Gharib said.

Why Michelle Obama praises 'American Sniper' Posted: 31 Jan 2015 08:41 AM PST The first lady spoke in Washington Friday during the launch of "6 Certified," an initiative toward accurate portrayals of veterans and military families in movies and television. "While I know there have been critics, I felt that, more often than not, this film touches on many of the emotions and experiences that I've heard firsthand from military families over these past few years," Mrs. Obama said at the event. Since its Jan. 16 release, "American Sniper" – which stars Bradley Cooper as the late Navy SEAL Chris Kyle – has both dominated the box office and sparked national debate about veterans and the Iraq war. Actor Seth Rogen and director Michael Moore were among the first to publicly denounce "American Sniper" on Twitter.

Iraqi libraries ransacked by Islamic State group in Mosul Posted: 31 Jan 2015 07:44 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — When Islamic State group militants invaded the Central Library of Mosul earlier this month, they were on a mission to destroy a familiar enemy: other people's ideas.

5 given preliminary charges over jihadi network in France Posted: 31 Jan 2015 07:37 AM PST PARIS (AP) — French authorities filed preliminary charges on Saturday against five men allegedly implicated in a jihadi recruiting network based in a small southern town from where about 20 youths went to fight in Syria and Iraq.

In northern Iraq, Kurds struggle with IS booby traps Posted: 31 Jan 2015 07:03 AM PST Several deminers have been killed since IS rolled into the northern Iraqi city of Mosul in June 2014, with about 8,000 IEDS successfully defused by Kurdish teams since then according to Mahmoud Hussein, who heads the peshmerga demining effort. Ms. Seecheran's organization spent most of 2013 and 2014 clearing land for camps hosting Syrian refugees and displaced Iraqis who sought shelter in the Kurdish areas.

Bahrain revokes nationality of 72 on security grounds Posted: 31 Jan 2015 06:13 AM PST The Bahraini government has revoked the nationality of 72 citizens for damaging national security, the state news agency BNA reported on Saturday. A list published on the agency's website included names of well-known Sunni and Shi'ite Muslim families, suggesting the move did not focus solely on the protracted unrest by Bahrain's Shi'ite Muslim majority. The move aimed "to preserve security and stability and to confront terrorist dangers and challenges, given that some citizens are acting to undermine the interests of the kingdom," the state news bulletin said. Bahrain's Sunni monarchy has repeatedly revoked the nationality of citizens deemed a security threat -- a policy condemned by rights groups -- but the decision announced on Saturday was the largest of its kind.

U.S. reports 27 more strikes against Islamic State Posted: 31 Jan 2015 05:45 AM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and its allies carried out 27 air strikes against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria since early Friday, the Combined Joint Task Force leading the operation reported on Saturday. Ten of the 17 strikes in Iraq hit near the oil city of Kirkuk, it said. In Syria, Islamic State targets near the border town of Kobani were attacked in eight of the 10 raids, the statement said. (Reporting by Washington newsroom; Editing by Louise Ireland)

List of Asian Cup champions Posted: 31 Jan 2015 03:58 AM PST MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Champions of the Asian Cup football tournament which ended Saturday:

Soccer-Asian Cup champions 1956-2015 Posted: 31 Jan 2015 03:37 AM PST SYDNEY, Jan 31 (Reuters) - List of Asian Cup champions after Australia won the 2015 title on Saturday. 2015 - Australia 2011 - Japan 2007 - Iraq 2004 - Japan 2000 - Japan 1996 - Saudi Arabia 1992 - Japan 1988 - Saudi Arabia 1984 - Saudi Arabia 1980 - Kuwait 1976 - Iran 1972 - Iran 1968 - Iran 1964 - Israel 1960 - South Korea 1956 - South Korea (Compiled by Julian Linden)

Egyptian interior ministry employee killed in Sinai Posted: 31 Jan 2015 02:15 AM PST Cairo (AFP) - An Egyptian interior ministry employee was killed in North Sinai, security officials said Saturday, two days after jihadists aligned with the Islamic State group killed 30 people in the peninsula.

Japan says hostage negotiations with militants 'deadlocked' Posted: 31 Jan 2015 01:51 AM PST Efforts by Japan and Jordan to secure the release of two of their nationals held captive by Islamic State militants remain "deadlocked" and the situation remains highly unpredictable, Japanese officials said. Japanese journalist Kenji Goto was also being held by the militants. "The situation is deadlocked," Japan's deputy foreign minister, Yasuhide Nakayama, said in Jordon late on Friday according to Japanese public broadcaster NHK. Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said in Tokyo on Saturday that the situation was unpredictable and that anything could happen, NHK reported.

White House grapples with fraught terrorism language Posted: 31 Jan 2015 12:31 AM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — Twice this month, the White House has publicly grappled with the politically fraught language of terrorism.

CIA, Israel plotted senior Hezbollah commander's killing: report Posted: 31 Jan 2015 12:01 AM PST The CIA and Israel's spy agency Mossad were behind an elaborate plot to kill Hezbollah commander Imad Mughniyeh in a 2008 car bomb attack in Syria, the Washington Post reported. Citing former intelligence officials, the newspaper reported that US and Israeli spy agencies worked together to target Mughniyeh on February 12, 2008 as he left a restaurant in the Syrian capital Damascus. The bomb, built by the United States and tested in the state of North Carolina, was triggered remotely by Mossad agents in Tel Aviv who were in communication with Central Intelligence Agency operatives on the ground in Damascus. A senior Hezbollah commander, Mughniyeh was suspected of masterminding the abduction of Western hostages in Lebanon in the 1980s and of the 1992 bombing of the Israeli embassy in Argentina that killed 29 people.

Chowing Down on Wings This Weekend? Here’s What Happens to the Rest of the Bird Posted: 30 Jan 2015 05:54 PM PST Chicken breasts have always been in high demand—they're big, easy to cook, and have a healthy reputation—but chicken wings didn't gain popularity until the invention of the Buffalo wing as a bar snack in 1964. This Super Bowl Sunday, Americans are expected to chow down on a record-high 1.25 billion chicken wings, and chicken producers have amped up production in order to meet that demand. "We estimate about 4 percent more chicken will be produced this year compared to last," said Bill Roenigk, senior vice president of the National Chicken Council.

U.S. ground troops could be needed in Iraq: Chuck Hagel Posted: 30 Jan 2015 04:54 PM PST Outgoing Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said in an interview on Friday the United States might eventually need to send non-combat ground troops to Iraq to help turn back Islamic State forces. Hagel, who announced his resignation under pressure in November, told CNN all options must be considered in Iraq, including sending troops for non-combat roles such as gathering intelligence and locating Islamic State targets. Whether we get there or not, I don't know." Hagel's comments echoed testimony by General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to Congress last fall when he said U.S. troops might have to take a larger role on the ground in Iraq.

Stocks sag at the close; January finishes on weak note Posted: 30 Jan 2015 03:07 PM PST The U.S. stock market capped a rough month Friday, delivering its third loss in five days and extending its declines for the year. All told, the Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 3 percent in January, its ...

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