Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Q&A: Kurds fight Islamic State and endure attacks
• Turkey strikes Kurdish bases in Iraq, truce in danger
• Turkey couples IS bombing runs with striking Kurdish targets
• Britain lifts Iran travel warning
• Bahrain recalls its Iran envoy over 'hostile comments'
• Iraq Kurds condemn Turkish air strikes on PKK
• U.S.-led coalition stages 31 air strikes on Islamic State: statement
• Turkey strikes Islamic State, Kurdish militants in drive for 'safe zone'
• Bahrain says foils arms smuggling bid, recalls Iran envoy
• Kurds march in Paris to protest Turkish airstrikes on PKK
• UK eases travel advice for visits to Iran as relations thaw
• Turkey launches airstrikes against ISIS in effort to create Syrian ‘safe zones’
• Turkish police water cannon, tear gas at Ankara demonstrators
• France in talks with Egypt for new corvette sale: diplomat
• Bomb attacks at swimming pool in northern Iraq kill at least 12
• Hungary to finish Serbia border fence by August 31: PM Orban
• Turkey strikes IS in Syria, Kurdish militants in Iraq
• Illegal migration clearly linked with terror threat: Hungary PM
• Turkey to continue security operation as long as threat exists: PM
• PKK Kurdish militants says truce has no meaning after Turkish air strike
• Australian Islamic State group medic arrested on return home
• Turkey confirms attacks on PKK militant camps in Iraq: statement
• Australian nurse arrested after return from Syria

Q&A: Kurds fight Islamic State and endure attacks Posted: 25 Jul 2015 03:24 PM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — Turkish jets struck camps belonging to Kurdish militants in northern Iraq Friday and Saturday in what were the first strikes since a peace deal was announced in 2013.

Turkey strikes Kurdish bases in Iraq, truce in danger Posted: 25 Jul 2015 01:23 PM PDT Turkey's military Saturday carried out a new wave of air and artillery strikes against both Islamic State (IS) jihadists in Syria and Kurdish militants in northern Iraq, putting in jeopardy a fragile ceasefire with Turkish Kurds. The two-pronged operation against IS and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) -- two groups who are themselves bitterly opposed -- came after a week of deadly violence in Turkey the authorities blamed on both organisations. The strikes on the PKK threw into doubt a fragile ceasefire between Kurdish separatists and Turkey in place since 2013, with the rebels saying the conditions for observing the truce had been "eliminated".

Turkey couples IS bombing runs with striking Kurdish targets Posted: 25 Jul 2015 01:15 PM PDT ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey's sudden willingness to join the fight against the Islamic State group is a sign that it's afraid of losing clout with the U.S., but its second front against Kurdish rebels in Iraq on Saturday could complicate Washington's war.

Britain lifts Iran travel warning Posted: 25 Jul 2015 11:44 AM PDT Britain lifted an official warning against all but essential travel to Iran on Saturday, citing "decreased hostility" in the wake of a landmark nuclear deal. Almost all of Iran is now marked "green" in the government's foreign travel advice, though border areas with Iraq, Pakistan and Afghanistan remain "red", a warning against all travel. In a statement, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said that British nationals should still carefully consider the risks of travelling to Iran, but that the situation had changed under the government of President Hassan Rouhani.

Bahrain recalls its Iran envoy over 'hostile comments' Posted: 25 Jul 2015 11:29 AM PDT Bahrain has decided to recall its ambassador to Tehran in protest at "hostile" comments by Iranian leaders, the official BNA news agency reported on Saturday. It said the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (SCIA) "strongly denounced the repeated blatant Iranian interference in Bahrain's internal affairs in order to shake up the kingdom's stability and fan tension". Parliament's foreign affairs committee had a short time before the announcement of the envoy's recall demanded an extraordinary Arab summit to discuss "Iranian interference".

Iraq Kurds condemn Turkish air strikes on PKK Posted: 25 Jul 2015 11:22 AM PDT The leadership of Iraqi Kurdistan on Saturday condemned Turkish air strikes against positions of PKK Kurdish rebels in its autonomous region in the north of Iraq. Kurdish regional President Massud Barzani spoke to Turkish Prime Minister Ahmed Davutoglu on the telephone and "expressed his displeasure with the dangerous level the situation has reached," a statement said. "He requested that the issue not be escalated to that level because peace is the only way to solve problems and years of negotiations are better than one hour of war," Barzani said in a statement.

U.S.-led coalition stages 31 air strikes on Islamic State: statement Posted: 25 Jul 2015 11:14 AM PDT The United States and its allies targeted Islamic State militants with 22 air strikes in Iraq on Friday and nine in Syria, the Command Joint Task Force said on Saturday. The strikes in Iraq were near the cities of Al Huwayjah, Bayji, Habbaniyah, Makmur, Mosul, Ramadi, Sinjar and Tel Afar and hit tactical units, weapons and other assets. In Syria, fighting positions, tactical units and equipment were targeted in strikes near Al Hasakah, Ar Raqqah, Dayr Az and Kobani, a statement said.

Turkey strikes Islamic State, Kurdish militants in drive for 'safe zone' Posted: 25 Jul 2015 11:01 AM PDT By Ece Toksabay ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish fighter jets and ground forces hit Islamic State militants in Syria and Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) camps in Iraq on Saturday, in a campaign Ankara said would help create a "safe zone" across swathes of northern Syria. The strikes followed Turkey's first-ever air attacks on Islamic State in Syria a day earlier and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told a news conference the heightened security operations will go on. "These operations are not 'one-point operations' and will continue as long as there is a threat against Turkey," he said.

Bahrain says foils arms smuggling bid, recalls Iran envoy Posted: 25 Jul 2015 10:47 AM PDT By Maha El Dahan and William Maclean ABU DHABU/DUBAI (Reuters) - Bahrain said on Saturday it had foiled an arms smuggling plot by two Bahrainis with ties to Iran and announced the recall of the Gulf island kingdom's ambassador to Tehran for consultations after what it said were repeated hostile Iranian statements. Bahrain made the announcements on the eve of a tour of some Arab states by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif aimed at calming tensions following a historic nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers. Announcing the arrests, the ministry said the two suspects had admitted receiving the shipment of explosives, automatic weapons and ammunition from Iranian handlers outside Bahrain's territorial waters.

Kurds march in Paris to protest Turkish airstrikes on PKK Posted: 25 Jul 2015 10:13 AM PDT PARIS (AP) — More than 1,000 Kurds and leftist Turks have marched in Paris to protest airstrikes by Turkey on Kurdish militant camps in northern Iraq.

UK eases travel advice for visits to Iran as relations thaw Posted: 25 Jul 2015 10:07 AM PDT LONDON (AP) — The British Foreign Office has eased its travel advisory on visits to Iran but urges caution.

Turkey launches airstrikes against ISIS in effort to create Syrian ‘safe zones’ Posted: 25 Jul 2015 09:12 AM PDT Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu made the announcement Saturday as Turkish fighter jets continue to attack ISIS targets in northern Syria, Reuters reports. "When areas in northern Syria are cleared of the [Islamic State] threat, the safe zones will be formed naturally," Mr. Cavusoglu told a news conference. "We have always defended safe zones and no-fly zones in Syria. Recommended: How much do you know about the Islamic State?

Turkish police water cannon, tear gas at Ankara demonstrators Posted: 25 Jul 2015 08:57 AM PDT ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish police fired water cannon and tear gas to disperse about 1,000 demonstrators who had gathered in the capital Ankara to protest against military strikes in Syria and northern Iraq, a Reuters cameraman at the scene said. Authorities had earlier said they would not allow a planned peace march to be held in Istanbul on Sunday, citing concerns about security and traffic. (Reporting by Mert Ozkan and Ece Toksabay; Writing by David Dolan; Editing by Angus MacSwan)

France in talks with Egypt for new corvette sale: diplomat Posted: 25 Jul 2015 08:38 AM PDT Egypt is in talks with France to buy two more naval corvettes, a French diplomat said Saturday, as Paris's Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian visited Cairo in an African tour. French shipbuilder DCNS had already signed a contract estimated at one billion euros ($1.1 billion) to supply four Gowind-class corvettes to Egypt, which also became the first country to purchase French Rafale jets. Le Drian, whose government has developed close ties with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, met the leader and his defence minister on Saturday morning.

Bomb attacks at swimming pool in northern Iraq kill at least 12 Posted: 25 Jul 2015 08:32 AM PDT At least 12 people were killed on Saturday when two suicide bombers attacked a crowded swimming pool in northern Iraq, a local official and police sources said. The attacks in the town of Tuz Khurmatu, about 175 km (110 miles) north of the capital Baghdad, left 45 others wounded. There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but Islamic State militants have recently launched a string of bombings in Baghdad and other provinces, including a huge attack earlier this month in Diyala province that killed more than 100 people.

Hungary to finish Serbia border fence by August 31: PM Orban Posted: 25 Jul 2015 06:19 AM PDT Hungary will finish building its anti-migrant fence on its southern border with Serbia by August 31, ahead of a previous November deadline, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Saturday. "The fence will be built by August 31, any schedules different from that are invalid," Orban told an audience at a Hungarian-language summer university in Baile Tusnad in Romania, according to Hungarian state news agency MTI. Work began last week on a short test section of the four-metre-high (12 feet) fence, a bid to stem a surge in 2015 in the number of migrants and asylum-seekers crossing into Hungary from Serbia.

Turkey strikes IS in Syria, Kurdish militants in Iraq Posted: 25 Jul 2015 04:13 AM PDT Turkey's military Saturday carried out a new wave of air and artillery strikes against Islamic State (IS) jihadists in Syria and Kurdish militants in northern Iraq, in an escalating campaign Ankara says is aimed at rooting out terror. The two-pronged operation against IS and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) -- two groups who are themselves bitterly opposed -- came after a week of deadly violence in Turkey the authorities blamed on both organisations. The PKK blasted the air raids on its northern Iraq mountain stronghold, saying a fragile ceasefire that had been in place since 2013 with Ankara "no longer has any meaning".

Illegal migration clearly linked with terror threat: Hungary PM Posted: 25 Jul 2015 03:23 AM PDT Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Saturday there was a clear link between illegal migrants heading to Europe and a rising threat of terrorism, justifying his conservative government's tough anti-immigration stance. The landlocked central European country is part of Europe's visa-free Schengen zone, making it attractive to migrants coming through the Balkans. Most are from poor or conflict-ridden countries like Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq, looking to move on to wealthier western Europe.

Turkey to continue security operation as long as threat exists: PM Posted: 25 Jul 2015 02:41 AM PDT ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey's security operations will continue for as long as it faces a threat, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Saturday, a day after Ankara dispatched war jets to attack Islamic State in Syria and Kurdish militants in northern Iraq. "These operations are not 'one-point operations' and will continue as long as there is a threat against Turkey," Davutoglu said at a news conference in Ankara, before heading to Istanbul, where he is due to meet with President Tayyip Erdogan and the head of the army this afternoon. ...

PKK Kurdish militants says truce has no meaning after Turkish air strike Posted: 25 Jul 2015 02:03 AM PDT The militant Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) said on Saturday its truce with Ankara had lost all meaning after an overnight attack by Turkish warplanes on its camps in northern Iraq. "The truce has no meaning anymore after these intense air strikes by the occupant Turkish army," the PKK said in a statement on its website. President Tayyip Erdogan opened peace talks with the Kurds in 2012, but they have since stalled and are beset by suspicion on both sides.

Australian Islamic State group medic arrested on return home Posted: 24 Jul 2015 10:29 PM PDT SYDNEY (AP) — An Australian nurse who says he was forced by Islamic State militants to work as a medic in Syria was arrested after returning home and faces terrorism-related charges of supporting the movement.

Turkey confirms attacks on PKK militant camps in Iraq: statement Posted: 24 Jul 2015 10:27 PM PDT ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish fighter jets launched attacks on camps of the militant Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in northern Iraq overnight, the prime minister's office said in a statement on Saturday, confirming earlier media reports. Turkey simultaneously launched ground attacks against the PKK and Islamic State in northern Syria, it said. (Reporting by Ece Toksabay and Gulsen Solaker; Writing by David Dolan; Editing by Paul Tait)

Australian nurse arrested after return from Syria Posted: 24 Jul 2015 08:49 PM PDT An Australian nurse who allegedly worked alongside Islamic State militants has been arrested after voluntarily returning from Syria, police said Saturday. The Melbourne-based father-of-five, widely named as Islamic convert Adam Brookman, surrendered to Turkish officials earlier this week ahead of his arrival in Sydney late Friday. "A 39-year-old Australian national was arrested upon arrival at Sydney International Airport last night on an interstate arrest warrant, relating to his alleged involvement in the conflict in Syria," federal police said in a statement.

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