Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• German politician stabbed in attack tied to migrant crisis
• Migrants pour into Slovenia from Croatia after Hungary closes border
• Democrats vying to succeed Obama line up behind his agenda
• Iran says to boost military support for Syria
• Thousands of migrants surge into Slovenia in new route
• UN's Blue Helmets to protect world's heritage from IS: Italy
• Former prosecutor, military vet: A look at Benghazi panel
• Iraq forces push north in a bid to reshape battlefield
• Russia says still deploying drones in Syria to aid strikes
• Three soldiers, 28 Kurdish militants killed in Turkish southeast
• Four migrants drown off Greek island, three missing
• Twelve migrants including children drown off Turkish coast: coastguard
• Amnesty criticizes EU's migrants deal with Turkey
• Germany presses Iran to use sway over Assad to end war in Syria
• Is the US mission in Afghanistan 'working'? Or is that just spin?
• AP PHOTOS: Editor selections from the Middle East
• Obama's foreign policy could burden Biden if he runs in 2016
• Putin Weaves a Tangled Mideast Web
• Optimism aside, US struggles to meet goals in Afghanistan
• Two dead in attack on Iran Shiite worshippers: state media

German politician stabbed in attack tied to migrant crisis Posted: 17 Oct 2015 04:02 PM PDT A German mayoral candidate active in helping refugees was seriously wounded on Saturday in what police described as a stabbing with a "racist, political" motive, heaping further pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel over the migrant crisis. The German leader expressed her "shock" over the attack in the western city of Cologne which left mayoral hopeful Henriette Reker with serious neck wounds. The stabbing comes as Merkel prepares to travel to Istanbul on Sunday for talks on the crisis with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has heaped scorn on Europe's efforts to deal with the problem so far.

Migrants pour into Slovenia from Croatia after Hungary closes border Posted: 17 Oct 2015 01:50 PM PDT Nearly 3,000 migrants trying to reach northern Europe crossed into Slovenia from Croatia on Saturday, having been forced to change their route after Hungary closed off another border with razor wire. Slovenia's government said 2,700 men, women and children had crossed by late Saturday from Croatia into its territory, where Ljubljana deployed soldiers at the border to help police with "logistics and equipment". The first arrivals, about 600 of them, went by bus to the border crossings of Gruskovje and Petisovci.

Democrats vying to succeed Obama line up behind his agenda Posted: 17 Oct 2015 01:44 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — If the recent Republican presidential debates have revealed hobbling breaks in the party, the Democrats' first political X-ray showed a couple of hairline fractures.

Iran says to boost military support for Syria Posted: 17 Oct 2015 01:20 PM PDT Iran is to step up its military support for the Syrian regime in the form of advice on fighting terrorism, Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian said Saturday. Abdollahian, quoted by state television, denied that his country had fighters on the ground in the Syrian conflict. "We have military advisers in Iraq and Syria at the request of the governments of the two countries ... We are going to step up our aid to Syria in the form of advice on the fight against terrorism," he said.

Thousands of migrants surge into Slovenia in new route Posted: 17 Oct 2015 12:54 PM PDT PETISOVCI, Slovenia (AP) — Thousands of migrants surged into tiny Slovenia on Saturday as an alternative route opened in Europe for them after Hungary sealed its border for their free flow, adding another hurdle in their frantic flight from wars and poverty toward what they hope is a better life in Western Europe.

UN's Blue Helmets to protect world's heritage from IS: Italy Posted: 17 Oct 2015 10:57 AM PDT Italy said Saturday that UNESCO has approved its suggestion to have the United Nation's famous Blue Helmets protect heritage sites around the world from attacks by Islamist militants. "UNESCO has said yes to the Cultural Blue Helmets," Culture Minister Dario Franceschini said in a statement, adding that 53 countries voted in favour after the destruction of sites including Palmyra in Syria by the Islamic State group.

Former prosecutor, military vet: A look at Benghazi panel Posted: 17 Oct 2015 08:13 AM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — When the House Select Committee on Benghazi holds its first public hearing in nearly 10 months, the spotlight will focus on a sole witness — Hillary Rodham Clinton, former first lady and senator, secretary of state and presidential contender.

Iraq forces push north in a bid to reshape battlefield Posted: 17 Oct 2015 08:10 AM PDT Iraqi forces pressed Saturday their biggest offensive in months to resume their long-stalled northward advance and disrupt jihadist lines, security officers said. After recapturing parts of Baiji and the huge nearby refinery complex from the Islamic State group, security and allied paramilitary forces thrust further northward up the main highway leading to Mosul. "Iraqi forces are besieging the villages of Msahaq and Zawiyah," about 25 kilometres (16 miles) north of Baiji, a senior officer in Salaheddin operations command said.

Russia says still deploying drones in Syria to aid strikes Posted: 17 Oct 2015 08:01 AM PDT Russia's military said Saturday it is continuing to use drones over Syria despite suspicions that one of its drones was downed by Turkey. "I would ... like to emphasise that Russian drones are continuing to monitor the situation in Syria's skies," spokesman Igor Konashenkov said, quoted by RIA Novosti news agency. Turkey on Friday downed a drone that the US military suspects to be Russian close to the Syrian border, although Moscow swiftly said its drones were all intact.

Three soldiers, 28 Kurdish militants killed in Turkish southeast Posted: 17 Oct 2015 07:59 AM PDT By Seyhmus Cakan DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) - Three soldiers and 28 Kurdish militants have been killed in air strikes and clashes over the past two days in Turkey's predominantly Kurdish southeast, the military said on Saturday, two weeks before an election. The soldiers were killed in clashes with Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants in Daglica, in the province of Hakkari, where six others were wounded. The military said it had killed 17 PKK members in a ground operation, which it said was still continuing, to flush out the attackers.

Four migrants drown off Greek island, three missing Posted: 17 Oct 2015 07:35 AM PDT Four migrants, the oldest of them a young woman of 16, drowned and three other people were missing after their rubber boat capsized off a Greek island late on Friday, the Greek coastguard said. The service said on Saturday it had rescued 13 people and was searching for the missing migrants, who included another child, after the boat capsized off the Aegean island of Kalymnos. Thousands of refugees - mostly fleeing war-torn Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq - attempt daily to cross the Aegean Sea from nearby Turkey, a short trip but a perilous one in the inflatable boats the migrants use, often in rough seas.

Twelve migrants including children drown off Turkish coast: coastguard Posted: 17 Oct 2015 06:10 AM PDT Twelve migrants thought to be from Syria and Afghanistan, including four children and a baby, drowned off the coast of Turkey as they tried to reach the Greek island of Lesbos, the Turkish coastguard said on Saturday. Reuters television footage showed bodies covered by plastic sheeting being brought ashore on a coastguard vessel near the Turkish town of Ayvacik, a few kilometers (miles) from the Greek island of Lesbos. A coastguard official said 23 people had been rescued, some by a Turkish fishing boat.

Amnesty criticizes EU's migrants deal with Turkey Posted: 17 Oct 2015 06:06 AM PDT ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Amnesty International called on European Union leaders on Saturday to put the rights of refugees above concerns to protect their borders, criticizing the EU's plan to offer aid and concessions to Turkey to stem the mass movement of asylum seekers to Europe.

Germany presses Iran to use sway over Assad to end war in Syria Posted: 17 Oct 2015 05:58 AM PDT German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier urged Iran on Saturday to use its influence over Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to move towards a diplomatic end to Syria's civil war. Steinmeier, on a four-day trip to the Middle East, travels to Saudi Arabia on Sunday and is using his meetings to weigh up how to bring Tehran and Riyadh into talks to reach a solution to the four-year-old Syrian conflict. Tehran has armed the Syrian government and, through its backing of Lebanese Hezbollah fighters, has helped Assad combat rebels seeking to end his rule.

Is the US mission in Afghanistan 'working'? Or is that just spin? Posted: 17 Oct 2015 05:25 AM PDT When President Obama announced this week that he would leave just over 5,000 US troops in Afghanistan when he leaves office – and contrary to his longtime pledge – the White House said the decision reflected a positive assessment of trends in America's longest war. "The fact the president wants to extend the mission is actually an indication it's working," said Josh Earnest, Mr. Obama's spokesman. Was that pure spin, or is the two-part mission in Afghanistan – to train and advise Afghan security forces, and to carry out counterterrorism operations – actually "working"?

AP PHOTOS: Editor selections from the Middle East Posted: 17 Oct 2015 03:03 AM PDT This week saw a wave of violence in the Holy Land, with deadly Palestinian stabbing attacks against Israelis and violent demonstrations across the West Bank and along the Gaza border.

Obama's foreign policy could burden Biden if he runs in 2016 Posted: 17 Oct 2015 03:02 AM PDT By James Oliphant WASHINGTON (Reuters) - When President Barack Obama announced this week that the United States would leave more troops than planned in Afghanistan, his vice president, Joe Biden, stood right at his side. As he calculates all the angles that would influence his candidacy - a decision is reportedly coming within days - Biden has more than the looming obstacle of front-runner Hillary Clinton to consider. As a candidate, he would become the chief defender of a foreign policy that critics say has been incoherent and that gets increasingly low marks in public opinion polls.

Putin Weaves a Tangled Mideast Web Posted: 17 Oct 2015 01:00 AM PDT He's playing it cool and pragmatic, but the Russian leader has his finger on a terrifying trigger button.

Optimism aside, US struggles to meet goals in Afghanistan Posted: 17 Oct 2015 12:39 AM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — America's war in Afghanistan, now in its 15th year, is long on official U.S. optimism about building a self-reliant Afghan army but short on convincing evidence that the goal will be reached anytime soon.

Two dead in attack on Iran Shiite worshippers: state media Posted: 17 Oct 2015 12:20 AM PDT Two Iranians were killed in a shooting attack on Shiite worshippers marking Ashura, one of the holiest commemorations of the faith, the official IRNA news agency reported. Two people were also wounded in the attack in the town of Dezful in Khuzestan province, the news agency said. "It's not still clear whether the attack was a terrorist one," provincial police official Colonel Rahman Mousavi said.

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