Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• FM: Iran could resume nuclear activities if West withdraws
• Pope condemns indifference to jihadist atrocities against Christians
• Russia and Red Cross appeal for 'humanitarian pause' in Yemen
• Aid will reach Yemen when conditions right: Arab coalition
• Video: Islamic State group shot, hammered away Iraq's Hatra
• IRAQ HATRA
• Video shows Islamic State smashing another ancient city. Real or fake?
• Afghan Shiite leader: Islamic State behind Shiite kidnapping
• Iraqi PM: Armies have no chance against IS if it keeps recruiting foreigners
• Russia urges UN-mandated pause in Yemen air strikes
• Egypt to try 48 for killing journalist, two civilians
• U.S. reports more air strikes against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria
• Pope leads prayers for persecuted Christians on Good Friday
• For military Millennials, 'duty or child?' is not just an issue for women
• Islamic State takes 90 percent of Damascus refugee camp: monitor
• Coalition bombards Yemen rebels, drops more arms
• UK police say arrest six at port on Syria-related offences
• Romania to expel seven for recruiting for Al-Qaeda, IS
• Sales of books on Islam rocket after France attacks
• UK police says arrest six at port on Syria-related offences
• Iraq's Tikrit, free of the Islamic State, is a city in ruins
• DEFINING THE PAST TO DETERMINE THE FUTURE

FM: Iran could resume nuclear activities if West withdraws Posted: 04 Apr 2015 04:36 PM PDT TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran's foreign minister said Saturday that Tehran would be able to return to its nuclear activities if the West withdraws from a pact that is to be finalized in June.

Pope condemns indifference to jihadist atrocities against Christians Posted: 04 Apr 2015 03:43 PM PDT Pope Francis condemned indifference and "complicit silence" to jihadist attacks on Christians as he presided over Easter ceremonies in the wake of a massacre of nearly 150 people at a Kenyan university by Shebab Islamists. The leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics brought up the extremist persecution of Christians as the holiest ceremonies of the Church calendar reached a climax Sunday, when believers celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. The Vatican has increasingly voiced frustration that attacks on Christians in places such as Iraq, Libya, Pakistan and Nigeria have not been more strongly condemned by Muslim authorities and Western governments.

Russia and Red Cross appeal for 'humanitarian pause' in Yemen Posted: 04 Apr 2015 01:49 PM PDT By Michelle Nichols and Mohammad Mukashaf UNITED NATIONS/ADEN (Reuters) - Russia and the Red Cross appealed on Saturday for a military pause in Yemen to allow urgent humanitarian aid deliveries and evacuation of civilians after 10 days of Saudi-led air strikes and fighting in which hundreds of people have died. Russia distributed a draft resolution at the United Nations pressing for suspensions of the air strikes to allow evacuation of foreign civilians and diplomats, and demanding rapid and unhindered humanitarian access.

Aid will reach Yemen when conditions right: Arab coalition Posted: 04 Apr 2015 01:42 PM PDT Aid will be allowed into strife-torn Yemen when conditions are right, the Saudi-led military coalition said Saturday after the Red Cross urged a 24-hour ceasefire to address "dire" conditions on the ground. "The humanitarian operation is part of our job, part of our responsibility," Brigadier General Ahmed Assiri told reporters on the 10th day of coalition air strikes against Shiite Huthi rebels in neighbouring Yemen. Assiri said aid "will come when we are able to set the conditions (so) that this aid will benefit the population". The Huthis, allied with army units loyal to ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh, have been fighting forces loyal to President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, who fled to the Saudi capital Riyadh late last month from Aden.

Video: Islamic State group shot, hammered away Iraq's Hatra Posted: 04 Apr 2015 12:36 PM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — Islamic State extremists at Iraq's ancient city of Hatra destroyed the archaeological site by smashing sledgehammers into its walls and shooting Kalashnikov assault rifles at priceless statues, a new militant video purportedly from the group shows.

IRAQ HATRA Posted: 04 Apr 2015 12:08 PM PDT Map shows Hatra, Iraq.; 1c x 2 inches; 46.5 mm x 50 mm;

Video shows Islamic State smashing another ancient city. Real or fake? Posted: 04 Apr 2015 11:16 AM PDT Another ancient city has fallen into the destructive hands of the Islamic State. The footage reveals the extremist group's latest efforts in its purge of Iraq and Syria's cultural heritage – particularly ancient relics that the group regards as false idols, based on their strict interpretation of Islamic law. The video supports a previous AP report, which said that residents living near Hatra, located some 290 kilometers northwest of Baghdad, heard large explosions and saw bulldozers razing the site. Once a large fortified city under the rule of the Parthian Empire, Hatra was the capital of the first Arab kingdom and withstood Roman invasions in 198 and 116 AD, according to UNESCO.

Afghan Shiite leader: Islamic State behind Shiite kidnapping Posted: 04 Apr 2015 10:59 AM PDT KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghanistan's senior Shiite community leader said on Saturday the Islamic State group is responsible for kidnapping dozens of Shiite men and boys in February.

Iraqi PM: Armies have no chance against IS if it keeps recruiting foreigners Posted: 04 Apr 2015 10:09 AM PDT Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi told a German magazine that armies in the region around Iraq had no chance of defeating Islamic State (IS) if the militants continued to recruit ideologically indoctrinated foreign fighters. "It is the 43 percent who are foreign fighters who have been indoctrinated ideologically who have their backs up against the wall. If Daesh continues to recruit so many from other countries, then no army in our region can stand up to it." Daesh is an Arabic name for Islamic State. Abadi said Germany could play a key role in supporting the fight against IS as it had weapons that Iraq requires, particularly anti-explosive devices.

Russia urges UN-mandated pause in Yemen air strikes Posted: 04 Apr 2015 09:58 AM PDT Russia called on the UN Security Council Saturday to push for a pause in the air war in Yemen, as a Saudi-led coalition pounded rebels in the country for a 10th day. Yemen's main southern city, a last foothold of supporters of self-exiled President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, has been shaken by more than a week of clashes between Shiite Huthi rebels and loyalist militia. Coalition warplanes and ships bombarded rebel positions in Aden on the 10th night of Operation Decisive Storm. For a second night, the coalition airdropped weapons and ammunition to supporters of Hadi, who fled to Saudi Arabia last month as the Iran-backed Huthis approached Aden.

Egypt to try 48 for killing journalist, two civilians Posted: 04 Apr 2015 08:48 AM PDT Mayada Ashraf, who worked for privately owned Al-Dustour newspaper, was shot in the head while she was covering clashes in Cairo's northern Ein Shams neighbourhood on March 28 last year. A statement said they were all members of the blacklisted Muslim Brotherhood of ex-president Mohamed Morsi who was ousted from power in July 2013 by the army. Ashraf is among 10 Egyptian journalists killed in Egypt since the 2011 uprising that ousted former president Hosni Mubarak, according to New York-based Committee to Protect Journalist (CPJ). Six journalists died in 2013 itself prompting CPJ to classify Egypt as the third most dangerous country for journalists that year after Syria and Iraq.

U.S. reports more air strikes against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria Posted: 04 Apr 2015 08:46 AM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and its allies conducted 15 air strikes against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria during the past 24 hours, a U.S. military statement said on Saturday. It said Islamic State targets near various Iraqi cities, including Mosul and Baiji, were hit in nine air attacks during the 24 hours to Saturday morning. In Syria, five air strikes were carried out near the northern border town of Kobani and one near Hasakah, the statement said. (Reporting by Mohammad Zargham; Editing by Frances Kerry)

Pope leads prayers for persecuted Christians on Good Friday Posted: 04 Apr 2015 07:37 AM PDT The Pope led Catholics in prayer for persecuted Christians around the world at a Good Friday service in Rome, a day after 148 students and security officers were massacred by Shebab Islamists in Kenya. A small group of believers carried a cross between 14 "stations" evoking the last hours of Jesus's life during the traditional Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) procession, as the Pope looked on. "Lord Jesus, inwardly support the persecuted. May the fundamental right to religious freedom spread far and wide," believers heard in a "meditation" written by Italian bishop Renato Corti.

For military Millennials, 'duty or child?' is not just an issue for women Posted: 04 Apr 2015 06:02 AM PDT A soldier from the 10th  Mountain Division had a particularly tough question this week for Defense Secretary Ashton Carter: Could the Army help her keep her job and her child? With one two-month exception, the 10th  Mountain's brigades have been deployed for 14 straight years in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as South Korea. She wanted to know if the Army could do anything to help. "OK, well that's a lousy choice," Carter agreed, according to Department of Defense transcripts.

Islamic State takes 90 percent of Damascus refugee camp: monitor Posted: 04 Apr 2015 05:12 AM PDT By Oliver Holmes BEIRUT (Reuters) - Islamic State has taken control of 90 percent of a Palestinian refugee camp on the Damascus outskirts where 18,000 civilians have suffered years of bombing, army siege and militia control, a monitoring group said on Saturday. The hardline group's offensive in Yarmouk gives it a major presence in the capital. Islamic State, the most powerful insurgent group in Syria, is now only a few kilometers from President Bashar al-Assad's seat of power. The United Nations has said it is extremely concerned about the safety and protection of Syrians and Palestinians in the camp.

Coalition bombards Yemen rebels, drops more arms Posted: 04 Apr 2015 04:55 AM PDT A Saudi-led coalition pounded rebels in southern Yemen Saturday and dropped more arms to loyalist fighters as the UN Security Council prepared to discuss calls for "humanitarian pauses" in the air war. Yemen's main southern city, a last foothold of supporters of absent President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, has been shaken by more than a week of fierce clashes between Shiite rebels and loyalist militia. Coalition war planes and ships bombarded Shiite Huthi rebel positions in Aden. For a second night, the coalition airdropped weapons and ammunition to supporters of Hadi, who fled to Saudi Arabia late last month as the Huthis approached his refuge.

UK police say arrest six at port on Syria-related offences Posted: 04 Apr 2015 04:10 AM PDT British police said on Saturday they had arrested six people at the southern English port of Dover on suspicion of terrorism offences related to the ongoing conflict in Syria. The five men and one woman, all aged in their 20s, were detained on Friday morning in the departure zone of the port, West Midlands police said. British security services estimate some 600 Britons have gone to Syria or Iraq to join militant groups, including the man known as "Jihadi John" who has appeared in several Islamic State beheading videos. On Wednesday, Turkish security forces detained nine British nationals who were apparently attempting to enter Syria.

Romania to expel seven for recruiting for Al-Qaeda, IS Posted: 04 Apr 2015 03:06 AM PDT Romania will expel seven foreign nationals accused of recruiting members for the Islamic State group and Al-Qaeda and propagating their ideas in the eastern European country, officials said Saturday. The Bucharest court of appeal this week ruled in separate cases that the seven should be prohibited from returning to the country for between three to seven years, Romania's interior intelligence agency SRI said in a statement. Six of the foreigners made up a group "affiliated to radical ideologies of the Al-Qaeda and Islamic State terrorist groups" and carried out "Islamic extremist propaganda... (and) recruitment for religious and military training in conflict zones affected by terrorism," the statement said.

Sales of books on Islam rocket after France attacks Posted: 04 Apr 2015 02:46 AM PDT Books on Islam are selling out in France after deadly extremist attacks in the capital raised uncomfortable questions about Europe's fastest-growing religion. A special magazine supplement focused on the Koran has flown off the shelves, and shops are selling more books on Islam than ever after the Paris attacks in January that left 17 dead. "The French are asking more and more questions, and they feel less satisfied than ever by the answers they're getting from the media," said Fabrice Gerschel, director of Philosophie magazine, which published the supplement. Sales of books on Islam were three times higher in the first quarter of 2015 than this time last year, according to the French National Union of Bookshops.

UK police says arrest six at port on Syria-related offences Posted: 04 Apr 2015 01:56 AM PDT British police said on Saturday they had arrested six people at the southern English port of Dover on suspicion of terrorism offences related to the ongoing conflict in Syria. The five men and one woman, all aged in their 20s, were detained on Friday morning in the departure zone of the port, West Midlands police said. British security services estimate some 600 Britons have gone to Syria or Iraq to join militant groups, including the man known as "Jihadi John" who has appeared in several Islamic State beheading videos. On Wednesday, Turkish security forces detained nine British nationals who were apparently attempting to enter Syria.

Iraq's Tikrit, free of the Islamic State, is a city in ruins Posted: 04 Apr 2015 12:09 AM PDT TIKRIT, Iraq (AP) — In Iraq's Tikrit, liberation from the Islamic State group comes at a heavy price, both in loss of life and in the sheer devastation the militants leave in their wake.

DEFINING THE PAST TO DETERMINE THE FUTURE Posted: 03 Apr 2015 10:10 PM PDT The 2016 presidential election will be a struggle between competing visions of the future -- as have been all American elections since 1796 -- but it may not be just a battle over the direction of the country. The first is the memory of the Bill Clinton 1990s. Scrubbed clean of the controversies over gays in the military, health care, terrorism and presidential impeachment, it now survives, in the view of Democrats at least, as a modern golden age, a fin-de-siecle Renaissance where culture flourished and affluence spread. The second is the memory of the George W. Bush years at the beginning of the new century.

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