Yahoo! News: Iraq

---

• The Islamic State economy: how Syrian antiquities fuel terrorism
• In Islamic State war, like others, heritage always a target
• Turkey, US conclude talks on anti-IS operation plan
• Medical charity says Syrian family showed signs of chemical exposure
• Berlin eases asylum rules for Syrians as migrants pour into EU
• U.S. reports 36 air strikes against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria
• VA Gets to Work, Reduces Backlog of Disability Claims by 84 Percent
• Iraq's Abadi says Baiji battle 'crucial' to ousting Islamic State
• A look at the latest developments in Europe's migrant crisis
• UN rights arm denounces executions in Iraq's Kurdish region
• U.S. Army nears high-stakes award for Humvee replacement
• Turkey to hold snap elections on November 1
• German party receives far-right threats after refugee visit
• UN condemns first executions in Kurdish region in 7 years
• IS CALIPHATE
• Allegations of new chemical attack in Syria
• Libya calls for international air strikes against IS
• Iraqi PM says defense of refinery town crucial to IS defeat
• 14 suspected IS recruiters arrested in Spain, Morocco
• Migrant crisis set to hijack western Balkans summit
• France sees Assad's 'neutralisation' as pre-condition for peace
• Veterans discharged for misconduct have higher risk of homelessness
• As violence in Turkey spirals, PKK commander urges restraint
• Islamic State shows images of ancient Syrian temple destruction
• Turkish PM begins work on new cabinet, Kurds see friction
• Merkel to visit site of anti-refugee clashes after criticism
• Spain, Morocco arrest 14 suspected of recruiting for Islamic State
• Up to 3,000 refugees, migrants expected a day in Macedonia: UNHCR
• France's Hollande: Turkey needs to ramp up Islamic State fight
• Turkish army says 34 Kurdish militants killed in northern Iraq air strikes
• 14 arrested in anti-jihadi raids in Morocco, Spain
• Islamic State images purport to show destroyed Syrian temple
• Iraq parliament chief puts electricity minister on the spot
• How a Biden-Warren Ticket Could Transform the Campaign
• Hungary wants more, less humiliating, EU funds to cope with migrants
• Terror charge against Australian teen dropped
• Soccer-Queiroz cautiously optimistic for Iran future
• Shah Deniz gas pipeline flow halted by explosion in Turkey: officials
• Gay men tell U.N. Security Council of being Islamic State targets
• US to deploy F-22 Raptor fighter jets in Europe

The Islamic State economy: how Syrian antiquities fuel terrorism Posted: 25 Aug 2015 04:06 PM PDT When the self-described Islamic State (IS) publicly beheaded a Syrian archaeologist last week for refusing to reveal the whereabouts of hidden treasures in the ancient city of Palmyra, it was a measure of how important the illicit sale of antiquities has become to the cash-hungry and predominantly self-financed organization. The extremist Islamist group that controls more than a third of both Syria and Iraq is awash in cash, experts in terrorist financing say. Recommended: How much do you know about the Islamic State?

In Islamic State war, like others, heritage always a target Posted: 25 Aug 2015 03:05 PM PDT CAIRO (AP) — A nearly 2,000-year-old temple in the Syrian city of Palmyra this week was the latest victim in the Islamic State group's campaign of destruction of historic sites across the territory it controls in Iraq and Syria.

Turkey, US conclude talks on anti-IS operation plan Posted: 25 Aug 2015 01:19 PM PDT ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish and U.S. officials have concluded "technical talks" over their cooperation on operations against the Islamic State group, Turkey's foreign minister said Tuesday.

Medical charity says Syrian family showed signs of chemical exposure Posted: 25 Aug 2015 12:55 PM PDT Medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) said on Tuesday it had treated a Syrian family with symptoms of exposure to chemical agents from an area where Islamic State fighters have been battling other rebels. Two adults, a three-year-old girl and a five-day-old baby girl were treated at an MSF-run hospital in Aleppo province, northern Syria, last Friday, the charity said in a statement. Within three hours they developed blisters and their breathing difficulties worsened, the statement said.

Berlin eases asylum rules for Syrians as migrants pour into EU Posted: 25 Aug 2015 12:54 PM PDT Germany on Tuesday said it had eased asylum rules for Syrians in a move expected to relieve pressure on southern European nations as thousands more migrants pour into the bloc. Record numbers of people are streaming into EU member Hungary from Serbia, posing a new headache for regional leaders who will meet this week at a summit to be dominated by Europe's worst migrant crisis since World War II. As criticism mounts over the bloc's response to the crisis, Germany said it has stopped returning Syrian asylum-seekers to their first EU port of entry, becoming the first member state to effectively simplify the application process for those fleeing the brutal civil war.

U.S. reports 36 air strikes against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria Posted: 25 Aug 2015 12:03 PM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and its allies carried out 36 air strikes against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria on Monday, a U.S. military statement said. Islamic State fighters, weapons and vehicles in Iraq were hit in 31 strikes in various areas, including 12 near Tuz, said the statement issued on Tuesday. Five air raids were conducted against militant targets in Syria, it added. (Reporting by Mohammad Zargham; Editing by Sandra Maler)

VA Gets to Work, Reduces Backlog of Disability Claims by 84 Percent Posted: 25 Aug 2015 11:30 AM PDT The Department of Veterans Affairs announcement on Monday that it had slashed the backlog of veterans' claims for disability coverage provided a rare bit of good news for an agency that has been rocked by scandal and controversy for years. The VA said the backlog has fallen 84 percent from a peak of 611,000 claims in March 2013. Saddled by inefficiency, incompetence and outdated technology, it wasn't that long ago that the VA staffers were stuffing thousands of applications for benefits in cardboard boxes or leaving them unopened in bins.

Iraq's Abadi says Baiji battle 'crucial' to ousting Islamic State Posted: 25 Aug 2015 11:21 AM PDT BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said the battle over the northern town of Baiji and its refinery - Iraq's largest - was critical to the fight against Islamic State. The town, about 190 km (120 miles) north of Baghdad, has been a battlefront for more than a year since its seizure by the Islamists in June 2014 as they swept through much of northern Iraq toward the capital. ...

A look at the latest developments in Europe's migrant crisis Posted: 25 Aug 2015 11:09 AM PDT GENEVA (AP) — Record numbers of migrants and refugees fleeing violence and poverty in countries such as Syria, Afghanistan and Eritrea are trying to reach Europe, despite the risks of perilous sea crossings and the inability of countries to provide adequate humanitarian assistance. Here are the latest developments Tuesday:

UN rights arm denounces executions in Iraq's Kurdish region Posted: 25 Aug 2015 10:59 AM PDT GENEVA (AP) — U.N. rights officials are denouncing the execution of a man and his two wives in Iraq's Kurdish region over the kidnapping and murder of two girls, saying they fear the self-ruled region may slide back toward use of the death penalty.

U.S. Army nears high-stakes award for Humvee replacement Posted: 25 Aug 2015 10:35 AM PDT The U.S. Army is expected to award a contract on Tuesday for a new armored truck to replace thousands of aging Humvees, a long-awaited deal that could be worth up to $30 billion for the winning team. Analysts see specialty truck maker Oshkosh Corp as the top contender to win a contract to build 55,000 new Joint Light Tactical Vehicles, or JLTVs, given its record in cranking out thousands of tailor-made mine-resistant, ambush-protected all-terrain vehicles, or M-ATV for U.S. troops in Afghanistan. The Pentagon's Defense Acquisition Board, led by chief arms buyer Frank Kendall, met on Tuesday to review the acquisition strategy for the vehicles developed by the U.S. Army, clearing the way for the expected Army announcement.

Turkey to hold snap elections on November 1 Posted: 25 Aug 2015 10:28 AM PDT Turkey is to hold snap elections on November 1 after coalition talks failed, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan tasking Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu Tuesday with forming an interim caretaker cabinet. The elections will take place at a critical moment in the country's modern history as the government battles Kurdish rebels in a hugely controversial air and land campaign. In an unusual twist, the caretaker cabinet will see the ruling Islamic-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP) forced to work alongside pro-Kurdish forces despised by Erdogan.

German party receives far-right threats after refugee visit Posted: 25 Aug 2015 10:26 AM PDT By Noah Barkin BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's Social Democrats (SPD) were forced to evacuate their headquarters on Tuesday after receiving a bomb threat and flood of racist emails and phone calls the party said were linked to leader Sigmar Gabriel's visit to the eastern town of Heidenau. The town near Dresden was the scene of violent clashes over the weekend as far-right militants, protesting against the arrival of around 250 refugees at a local shelter, pelted police with bottles and rocks, some shouting "Heil Hitler". Gabriel, who is also vice chancellor and economy minister in Chancellor Angela Merkel's government, traveled to the town on Monday and denounced the "mob" behind the violence.

UN condemns first executions in Kurdish region in 7 years Posted: 25 Aug 2015 10:16 AM PDT The UN on Tuesday condemned the execution by the government of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region of three people convicted of murder and kidnapping, in the first use of the death penalty in the region in seven years. Farhad Jaafar Mahmood and his two wives, Khuncha Hassan Ismaeil and Berivan Haider Karim, were hanged in the early hours of August 12, after being convicted of kidnapping and murdering two girls. "We are dismayed to learn of the executions," Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the UN rights office, told reporters in Geneva.

IS CALIPHATE Posted: 25 Aug 2015 10:15 AM PDT IS CALIPHATE 082515: Map locates the Islamic State group's area of support and control in Syria and Iraq. Points out Palmrya, the site of the recently destroyed 2,000-year-old temple.; 3c x 4 inches; 146 mm x 101 mm;

Allegations of new chemical attack in Syria Posted: 25 Aug 2015 09:59 AM PDT Activists and medical organisations have documented an alleged chemical weapons attack on a Syrian town last week that affected dozens of civilians, with one source blaming the Islamic State group. Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said it had treated civilians apparently exposed to a chemical agent in Marea, without saying what type or providing overall casualty figures. The Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS) said its own doctors in the northern town had identified the agent as mustard gas.

Libya calls for international air strikes against IS Posted: 25 Aug 2015 09:40 AM PDT Libya's foreign minister on Tuesday renewed a call for the lifting of an arms embargo and for international air strikes to help tackle the Islamic State group which threatens to create a "rear base" in the country. "The situation is extremely serious," Mohamed al-Dayri, foreign minister for Libya's internationally-recognised government based in Tobruk, told AFP on a visit to Paris. Libya has two rival governments and has been torn apart since the international community helped oust its leader Moamer Kadhafi in 2011.

Iraqi PM says defense of refinery town crucial to IS defeat Posted: 25 Aug 2015 09:11 AM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — Winning the battle for control of an oil refinery town north of Baghdad is a key step toward defeating the Islamic State group, Iraq's prime minister said in remarks aired Tuesday, hours before a suicide attack killed 13 soldiers and allied militiamen in the western Anbar province.

14 suspected IS recruiters arrested in Spain, Morocco Posted: 25 Aug 2015 08:53 AM PDT Spain and Morocco on Tuesday arrested 14 people on suspicion of belonging to a network that recruited and sent fighters to the Islamic State group. One suspect was detained in Spain while the other 13 were arrested in cities across Morocco, a Spanish interior ministry statement said, describing it as a "joint anti-terrorist operation". "Those arrested formed part of a network whose main activity was to recruit and send foreign fighters to join the ranks of the terrorist organisation Daesh in regions of Syria and Iraq under its control," it said, using the main Arabic acronym for the group.

Migrant crisis set to hijack western Balkans summit Posted: 25 Aug 2015 08:43 AM PDT Europe's raging migrant crisis is set to hijack a summit in Vienna of leaders from the western Balkans region on Thursday that will also be attended by German Chancellor Angela Merkel. When it was announced a year ago, the gathering of a slew of heads of government and ministers as well as EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini was meant to be about regional cooperation and prospects for joining the EU. Some 102,000 migrants entered the EU via Macedonia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Montenegro or Kosovo between January and July this year, versus just 8,000 for the same period in 2014, according to EU border agency Frontex.

France sees Assad's 'neutralisation' as pre-condition for peace Posted: 25 Aug 2015 08:34 AM PDT French President Francois Hollande said Tuesday that the "neutralisation" of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad was a pre-condition to resolving the crisis in the war-torn country. "We must reduce the terrorist influence without maintaining Assad. The two are bound up together," Hollande told a gathering of French diplomats in Paris.

Veterans discharged for misconduct have higher risk of homelessness Posted: 25 Aug 2015 08:34 AM PDT By Kathryn Doyle (Reuters Health) - U.S. veterans returning from Afghanistan and Iraq who were discharged due to misconduct are more likely to be homeless than other returning vets, according to a new study. "Collectively, these results represent the strongest risk factor for homelessness among U.S. veterans observed to date, and may help to explain the higher risk of homelessness observed among veterans, despite access to VA benefits and services," Gundlapalli told Reuters Health by email. The researchers used data on 448,290 U.S. active-duty military service members who were separated from the military between 2001 and 2011, deployed in Afghanistan or Iraq, and who subsequently used Veterans Health Administration services.

As violence in Turkey spirals, PKK commander urges restraint Posted: 25 Aug 2015 07:55 AM PDT By Ayla Jean Yackley ISTANBUL (Reuters) - A senior commander in the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) on Tuesday called on armed followers to refrain from unprovoked attacks on security forces as violence escalates in southeastern Turkey following the collapse of a ceasefire. Duran Kalkan, a member of the PKK's executive committee, stopped well short of ordering a new truce but said attacks on conscripts and other soldiers merely doing their duty violated the PKK's "views". More than 60 police officers and soldiers have been killed in attacks by the PKK and affiliated groups and close to 200 have been wounded, dashing hopes that a 2-1/2-year ceasefire could spell the end of the long-running insurgency.

Islamic State shows images of ancient Syrian temple destruction Posted: 25 Aug 2015 06:53 AM PDT BEIRUT/DAMASCUS (Reuters) - Islamic State militants published photos on Tuesday purporting to show the destruction of a Roman-era temple in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra, an act the U.N. cultural agency UNESCO has called a war crime. Syria's antiquities chief Maamoun Abdulkarim told Reuters the images did appear to show the destruction of the ancient Baal Shamin temple and correlated with descriptions given by residents of the explosion detonated there on Sunday. Five photos were distributed on social media showing explosives being carried inside, being planted around the walls of the temple, a large blast and then rubble.

Turkish PM begins work on new cabinet, Kurds see friction Posted: 25 Aug 2015 06:37 AM PDT By Tulay Karadeniz and Gulsen Solaker ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Tuesday called on reluctant opposition parties to join an interim government ahead of new elections, but two refused and the third, a pro-Kurdish party, said it doubted he was serious. Davutoglu was earlier appointed by President Tayyip Erdogan to form a temporary power-sharing cabinet and lead Turkey into an election on Nov. 1, after two months of coalition talks failed to produce a working government. Within hours, two opposition parties - the secularist CHP and the nationalist MHP - reiterated that they would not take part, raising the prospect of a cabinet dominated by Davutoglu's Islamist-rooted AK Party and propped up by outsiders who could include loyal bureaucrats and ex-AKP members.

Merkel to visit site of anti-refugee clashes after criticism Posted: 25 Aug 2015 06:07 AM PDT German Chancellor Angela Merkel will pay a visit on Wednesday to the eastern town where anti-refugee protests erupted in violence at the weekend, after she came under criticism from other parties for a belated response to the clashes. Merkel will meet asylum seekers, volunteers and security forces in the town of Heidenau, near Dresden, accompanied by the state premier of Saxony, her spokesman said in a statement. The clashes early on Saturday between police and far-right militants angry about the arrival of roughly 250 asylum seekers, who are being housed in a former building supplies store in the town, left 31 police officers injured.

Spain, Morocco arrest 14 suspected of recruiting for Islamic State Posted: 25 Aug 2015 05:55 AM PDT Spain and Morocco arrested 14 people on Tuesday suspected of planning attacks and recruiting fighters to join Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, the Spanish government said. All the arrests were made in Morocco apart from one man detained in the small town of San Martin de la Vega, near Madrid, where hooded anti-terrorist police brought the suspect out from his home with his head covered, according to Reuters television journalists at the scene.

Up to 3,000 refugees, migrants expected a day in Macedonia: UNHCR Posted: 25 Aug 2015 05:35 AM PDT By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) - Up to 3,000 migrants are expected to cross into Macedonia every day in the coming months, most of them refugees fleeing war, particularly from Syria, the United Nations said on Tuesday. Member states of the European Union must share the burden by establishing "equitable re-distribution" of desperate families seeking asylum in the bloc, the U.N. refugee agency said. Nearly 300,000 people have crossed the Mediterranean this year, including nearly 181,500 in Greece and 108,500 in Italy, according to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

France's Hollande: Turkey needs to ramp up Islamic State fight Posted: 25 Aug 2015 05:07 AM PDT By John Irish and Marine Pennetier PARIS (Reuters) - French President Francois Hollande said on Tuesday Turkey must do more to tackle Islamic State in Syria and urged it to restore dialogue with Kurdish groups after launching strikes against them more than a month ago. Hollande delivered his annual foreign policy speech to French ambassadors a day after the Turkish foreign minister told Reuters that Turkey and the United States would launch air operations to push Islamic State from a border area in northern Syria, something that could help prevent the militants bringing in fighters and arms in.

Turkish army says 34 Kurdish militants killed in northern Iraq air strikes Posted: 25 Aug 2015 05:04 AM PDT ANKARA (Reuters) - The Turkish military said on Tuesday 34 militants from the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) were killed in its latest air strikes on the group's camps in northern Iraq's Qandil mountain region. Turkey has been bombing PKK targets in northern Iraq and in mostly Kurdish southeastern Turkey since July 24, in response to what it says are increased attacks by the Kurdish militants on members of the security forces. (Reporting by Ece Toksabay; Editing by Nick Tattersall)

14 arrested in anti-jihadi raids in Morocco, Spain Posted: 25 Aug 2015 04:56 AM PDT RABAT, Morocco (AP) — At least 14 suspected members of a cell that recruited jihadi fighters for the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria were arrested Tuesday in a joint operation in Morocco and Spain, authorities said.

Islamic State images purport to show destroyed Syrian temple Posted: 25 Aug 2015 04:54 AM PDT BEIRUT (AP) — The Islamic State group released propaganda images Tuesday that purport to show militants laying explosives in and then blowing up the 2,000-year-old temple of Baalshamin in Syria's ancient caravan city of Palmyra.

Iraq parliament chief puts electricity minister on the spot Posted: 25 Aug 2015 04:36 AM PDT Iraq's parliament speaker threatened the electricity minister Tuesday with a vote of no confidence if he does not appear within four days to be quizzed over a persistent power crisis. For weeks, demonstrators have protested against corruption and poor services, especially abysmal power provision, making minister Qassem al-Fahdawi a prime target for popular anger. Parliament speaker Salim al-Juburi "warns the electricity minister that he will be held accountable in absentia and that confidence will be withdrawn from him if he does not attend by Saturday at the latest," a statement from his office said.

How a Biden-Warren Ticket Could Transform the Campaign Posted: 25 Aug 2015 03:15 AM PDT A CNN/ORC poll published last Friday showed that the public disapproves of the way President Obama is leading the country by a margin of 51 percent to 47 percent. This would be troubling news for Obama if he were seeking a third term, which of course he's not. After months of private deliberations and consultation with his family, Democratic party activists and potential campaign donors, the 72-year-old Biden is now "increasingly leaning" towards challenging former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for their party's presidential nomination, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Hungary wants more, less humiliating, EU funds to cope with migrants Posted: 25 Aug 2015 02:25 AM PDT By Gergely Szakacs BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Hungary wants more European Union funds to cope with the worst refugee crisis since World War Two, Prime Minister Viktor Orban's chief of staff was quoted as saying on Tuesday. Hungary is part of the European Union's Schengen zone of passport-free travel and borders non-EU Serbia and Ukraine making it attractive to migrants. It has registered over 100,000 migrants so far this year, compared with 43,000 in all 2014.

Terror charge against Australian teen dropped Posted: 25 Aug 2015 12:48 AM PDT Australian authorities Tuesday dropped a terror charge against a teenager over an alleged Islamic State-inspired plot to attack Anzac Day commemorations honouring the war dead, citing insufficient evidence. Harun Causevic, 18, was arrested along with fellow teen Sevdet Ramden Besim in raids in Melbourne in April and both were charged with conspiring to commit a terrorist act. Five men were initially arrested in the counter-terrorism raids in Melbourne but only two were charged with conspiring to commit a terrorist act on Anzac Day, when Australian and New Zealand Army Corps troops who died in combat are remembered.

Soccer-Queiroz cautiously optimistic for Iran future Posted: 24 Aug 2015 11:57 PM PDT By Patrick Johnston Aug 25 (Reuters) - Iran boss Carlos Queiroz is too well versed in soccer politics to accept all the issues he faces in his role will be fixed following the nuclear deal that will lift financial sanctions on the Islamic Republic. The former Real Madrid and Portugal manager has already resigned twice in his four years at the helm of the Iran side following rows with administrators on how to improve the running of the game in Asia's best nation, according to FIFA rankings. The former Manchester United assistant boss is desperate for greater investment to help a side he led to last year's World Cup, but spending is not easy.

Shah Deniz gas pipeline flow halted by explosion in Turkey: officials Posted: 24 Aug 2015 10:43 PM PDT Gas flow on the Shah Deniz pipeline carrying natural gas from Azerbaijan was halted by an explosion in Turkey on Monday evening, energy sector officials said, with one saying it was thought Kurdish militants had sabotaged the pipeline. The officials told Reuters that gas flow had been halted on Aug. 3 due to maintenance and had only resumed on Aug. 23 but had not yet reached capacity before Monday's blast. "Last night there was an explosion in the pipeline on the Turkish side and the flow stopped," one senior official said.

Gay men tell U.N. Security Council of being Islamic State targets Posted: 24 Aug 2015 06:34 PM PDT By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Syrian refugee Subhi Nahas watched in fear as the al Qaeda-linked group Nusra Front took over his home town of Idlib and began torturing and executing men suspected of being gay. Then, with the rise of Islamic State, came videos of gay men being hurled from buildings. "This was to be my fate, too," Nahas told a closed-door informal meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Monday.

US to deploy F-22 Raptor fighter jets in Europe Posted: 24 Aug 2015 06:21 PM PDT Washington (AFP) - The United States soon will deploy F-22 Raptors in Europe, sending the stealth fighter jets to reassure NATO partners concerned about Russia's actions in Ukraine, a Pentagon official said.

You are subscribed to email updates from Iraq News Headlines - Yahoo! News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, United States