Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Russia accuses Turkey of arming extremists in Syria
• Obama: 'Madmen' must not be allowed to get nuclear material
• Exclusive: U.S. weighs ramping up deployment of special forces to Syria
• Obama, leaders urge more action on nuclear security, terror
• Obama warns Erdogan's Turkey headed down troubling path
• The Latest: Obama says US-Russia nuke reductions will go on
• US military training 'dozens' of moderate Syrian rebels
• Obama warns IS 'madmen' would gladly use nukes
• Leaders of Libyan unity govt venture onto Tripoli streets
• Iraqi PM Abadi's nominee as oil minister withdraws candidacy
• Nigeria's Boko Haram releases new video denying surrender
• Turkey's all-women newspaper works for change in the Middle East
• Jobless rate jumps for recent veterans
• Trapped civilians stall Iraqi forces battling IS in Anbar
• Today in History
• U.S. military training dozens of Syrian fighters in new program
• IS threat growing as Turkey focuses on Kurds
• UNHCR warns against immediate refugee returns to Turkey
• Turkish fighter jets bomb Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq
• New TV Ad Highlights Needs of Middle Eastern Christians Facing Genocide and Extinction
• AP Interview: Corruption probe holds lessons for Monaco
• As support for torture grows, so does consensus that it doesn't work
• Belgium largest source of European fighters in Syria per head: study
• Women veterans gather to swap stories, gain experience
• Geologist tipped as Iraq's oil minister may facilitate deal with Kurds
• U.S. leads 17 strikes in Syria, Iraq against Islamic State -statement
• Turkish warplanes hit targets in northern Iraq: military
• Germany's refugee crisis: A job-creation package in disguise?
• Noisy US welcome as Erdogan defends hardline stance
• Turkey Is Playing a Dangerous Game With ISIS as It Seeks Islamic Glory
• Muslim mothers fight 'toxic' merchants of terror
• Monaco, UK probe 'vast corruption scandal' in oil business
• At once-stodgy VFW, a new portrait of America's changing military

Russia accuses Turkey of arming extremists in Syria Posted: 01 Apr 2016 04:43 PM PDT UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Russia is accusing three Turkish foundations of supplying weapons and military equipment to Islamic State extremists in Syria and says $1.9 million worth of explosives and industrial chemicals were smuggled across Turkey's border to extremist groups.

Obama: 'Madmen' must not be allowed to get nuclear material Posted: 01 Apr 2016 04:41 PM PDT By Roberta Rampton, Matt Spetalnick and David Brunnstrom WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama urged world leaders on Friday to do more to safeguard vulnerable nuclear facilities to prevent "madmen" from groups like Islamic State from getting their hands on a nuclear weapon or a radioactive "dirty bomb." Speaking at a nuclear security summit in Washington, Obama said the world faced a persistent and evolving threat of nuclear terrorism despite progress in reducing such risks. Obama said no group had succeeded in obtaining bomb materials but that al Qaeda had long sought them, and he cited actions by Islamic State militants behind recent attacks in Paris and Brussels that raised similar concerns.

Exclusive: U.S. weighs ramping up deployment of special forces to Syria Posted: 01 Apr 2016 04:34 PM PDT By Phil Stewart, Warren Strobel and Jonathan Landay WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. administration is considering a plan to greatly increase the number of American special operations forces deployed to Syria as it looks to accelerate recent gains against Islamic State, U.S. officials told Reuters. The proposal is among the military options being prepared for President Barack Obama, who is also weighing an increase in the number of American troops in Iraq. The proposal appears to be the latest sign of growing confidence in the ability of U.S.-backed forces inside Syria and Iraq to claw back territory from the hardline Sunni Islamist group.

Obama, leaders urge more action on nuclear security, terror Posted: 01 Apr 2016 04:32 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — World leaders declared progress Friday in safeguarding nuclear materials sought by terrorists and wayward nations, even as President Barack Obama acknowledged the task was far from finished.

Obama warns Erdogan's Turkey headed down troubling path Posted: 01 Apr 2016 04:22 PM PDT US President Barack Obama admitted Friday he was "troubled" by the path President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is taking Turkey down, amid rows over press freedom and the war in Syria. "It's no secret that there are some trends within Turkey that I have been troubled with," Obama said, when asked whether he considers the Turkish leader an authoritarian.

The Latest: Obama says US-Russia nuke reductions will go on Posted: 01 Apr 2016 04:01 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the global nuclear security summit that President Barack Obama is hosting in Washington (all times local):

US military training 'dozens' of moderate Syrian rebels Posted: 01 Apr 2016 03:59 PM PDT The US military is currently working with "dozens" of Syrian rebels under a revamped train-and-equip program implemented after a much-criticized initiative collapsed last year, an official said Friday. The Pentagon drew heavy fire last October after admitting its $500-million efforts to train entire units of "moderate" Syrians to fight Islamic State jihadists had floundered, with numbers of trainees falling massively short of the planned 5,000 or so. Recruitment was slow, in particular because the rebels had to pass stringent background checks to weed out extremists and many objected to being forced to pledge to fight only the IS group and not President Bashar al-Assad's regime.

Obama warns IS 'madmen' would gladly use nukes Posted: 01 Apr 2016 03:41 PM PDT Extremist "madmen" from the Islamic State group would not hesitate to launch a catastrophic nuclear attack, US President Barack Obama warned global leaders meeting in Washington Friday. Hoping to galvanize global action to prevent extremists from getting hold of nuclear weapons or material for a "dirty bomb," Obama painted an apocalyptic picture of the impact of a nuclear terror attack. "ISIL has already used chemical weapons, including mustard gas, in Syria and Iraq," Obama said, using an acronym for the Islamic State group.

Leaders of Libyan unity govt venture onto Tripoli streets Posted: 01 Apr 2016 02:03 PM PDT By Hani Amara TRIPOLI (Reuters) - Leaders of Libya's U.N.-backed unity government ventured out onto the streets of Tripoli for the first time on Friday, amid signs of growing confidence in their bid for power. Unity government head Fayez Seraj and other members of its Presidential Council attended prayers at a mosque and met people in the main square before returning to the heavily-guarded naval compound where they have been based since arriving from Tunisia on Wednesday. Western powers are forcefully backing the unity government, hoping it will seek foreign support to confront Islamic State militants, deal with migrant flows from Libya to Europe and restore oil production to shore up Libya's economy.

Iraqi PM Abadi's nominee as oil minister withdraws candidacy Posted: 01 Apr 2016 01:42 PM PDT The nominee for the post of oil minister in Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's proposed cabinet, Nizar Saleem Numan, who is a Kurd, withdrew his candidacy on Friday apparently because he had not been formally put forward by the main Kurdish groups. "Because there is no political agreement over the form of the future government, I withdraw my candidacy for the ministry of oil position," he told a news conference in Dohuk. Numan, a 65-year-old petroleum geologist, is part of the lineup of technocrats presented on Thursday by Abadi who wants the new government to focus on fighting rampant graft in the OPEC nation.

Nigeria's Boko Haram releases new video denying surrender Posted: 01 Apr 2016 01:04 PM PDT Boko Haram released a new video Friday denying any suggestion it might surrender, just over a week after shadowy leader Abubakar Shekau appeared in a rare message looking dejected and frail. Shekau, unseen on camera for more than a year, released an unverified video late last month saying his time in charge of the Nigerian jihadist group may be coming to an end. If the video indeed depicts Shekau, he appears thin and listless, delivering his message without his trademark fiery rhetoric.

Turkey's all-women newspaper works for change in the Middle East Posted: 01 Apr 2016 11:51 AM PDT Journalists have long been the targets of harassment and even death threats in Turkey. Its website has been blocked four times for "supporting terrorism," and one reporter served three months in jail for covering a political demonstration. The Jin News Agency (JINHA) is completely staffed by women, offering news coverage of Turkey, Iraq, and Syria in multiple languages.

Jobless rate jumps for recent veterans Posted: 01 Apr 2016 11:27 AM PDT Recent veterans took a hit in the job market in March. The unemployment rate of veterans who served in the U.S. Armed Forces after September 2001 jumped to 6.3 percent from 4.7 percent a month earlier. ...

Trapped civilians stall Iraqi forces battling IS in Anbar Posted: 01 Apr 2016 11:16 AM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — Tens of thousands of trapped Iraqi civilians have stalled the government's advance in the battle against the Islamic State group in the western Anbar province, the spokesman for Iraq's elite counterterrorism said Friday.

Today in History Posted: 01 Apr 2016 10:29 AM PDT Today is Friday, April 1, the 92nd day of 2016. There are 274 days left in the year. This is April Fool's Day.

U.S. military training dozens of Syrian fighters in new program Posted: 01 Apr 2016 10:24 AM PDT The U.S. military said on Friday it has started training dozens of Syrian opposition fighters to battle the militant group Islamic State as part of a revamped program that aims to avoid mistakes that doomed its first training effort in Turkey last year. Training for the first group of recruits includes how to identify targets for U.S.-led coalition airstrikes to allow coalition aircraft to better strike Islamic State from the air. "That allows us to bring significantly more fires into play in any of these skirmishes, battles, and firefights that are taking place throughout Syria," said U.S. Army Colonel Steve Warren, a Baghdad-based spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition.

IS threat growing as Turkey focuses on Kurds Posted: 01 Apr 2016 09:43 AM PDT ISTANBUL (AP) — As Turkey pushes its campaign against Kurdish militants linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party another deadly foe is gaining momentum — the Islamic State group.

UNHCR warns against immediate refugee returns to Turkey Posted: 01 Apr 2016 09:24 AM PDT By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) - Conditions for refugees in Greece are worsening and arrival numbers rising but the safeguards needed to start returning some of them to Turkey next week are not yet in place, aid agencies said on Friday. Fighting has broken out in some crowded reception centers in Greece, which now hosts 51,000 refugees and migrants, and the system for registering asylum applications is overloaded, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said. Turkey is due to begin taking back illegal migrants from Greece on Monday under a deal with the European Union, but neither side is fully ready and any start may only be symbolic.

Turkish fighter jets bomb Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq Posted: 01 Apr 2016 08:53 AM PDT ISTANBUL (AP) — The Turkish military says fighter jets have carried out strikes against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq.

New TV Ad Highlights Needs of Middle Eastern Christians Facing Genocide and Extinction Posted: 01 Apr 2016 08:15 AM PDT NEW HAVEN, Conn., April 1, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A new television commercial from the Knights of Columbus began airing nationwide yesterday, highlighting the ongoing needs faced by Christian victims of genocide in the Middle East. Following, the State Department's recent designation that Christian and other religious minorities face genocide at the hands of ISIS, the U.S. has joined the international consensus on the issue. "Christians are still being kidnapped, killed and sold into slavery.

AP Interview: Corruption probe holds lessons for Monaco Posted: 01 Apr 2016 07:38 AM PDT PARIS (AP) — Monaco's government says it's investigating how an alleged vast oil corruption scandal involving a Monaco-based company long went unnoticed, even though the principality has opened up its financial sector and cracked down on tax dodging.

As support for torture grows, so does consensus that it doesn't work Posted: 01 Apr 2016 07:22 AM PDT A Reuters/Ispos poll Wednesday showed that 63 percent of Americans felt "the use of torture against suspected terrorists" was "often or sometimes justified." The levels of support are roughly equivalent to Nigeria, which is enduring a seven-year insurgency, and Kenya which has been hit with a number of large-scale attacks by Al Shabab in recent years, Reuters noted. Recommended: How much do you know about the Islamic State?

Belgium largest source of European fighters in Syria per head: study Posted: 01 Apr 2016 07:11 AM PDT By Thomas Escritt AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - French, Germans and Britons make up the highest number of foreign fighters in the Syrian rebel ranks from European countries, but Belgium is the largest contributor in proportion to its population, a Dutch study shows. Europeans fighting alongside Islamist groups in Syria and Iraq have been high on the agenda of European security concerns for several years. Returned volunteers have been involved in attacks in Paris and Brussels over the past 18 months, including last month's bomb blasts in the Belgian capital.

Women veterans gather to swap stories, gain experience Posted: 01 Apr 2016 06:25 AM PDT NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Air Force veteran Liz Skilbeck recently got a new license plate for her vehicle that identifies it as being driven by a female veteran. Before that, the license plate just identified it as being driven by a veteran, causing people to thank her husband for his service.

Geologist tipped as Iraq's oil minister may facilitate deal with Kurds Posted: 01 Apr 2016 05:42 AM PDT By Isabel Coles and Saif Hameed ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - The man nominated to be Iraq's new oil minister is a Kurdish petroleum geologist who could end a bitter dispute with the northern self-rule region and free up more oil exports through a pipeline to Turkey. Nizar Saleem Numan, named as oil minister in Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's new lineup of ministers, told Reuters in an interview he was "hopeful the differences could be resolved" between Baghdad and the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG). "He is also a very experienced person in the oil industry and known for his integrity." Numan, 65, is the dean of the college of planning at the University of Duhok in the Kurdish region and spent three decades at the University of Mosul, the largest city in northern Iraq, now under control of Islamic State militants.

U.S. leads 17 strikes in Syria, Iraq against Islamic State -statement Posted: 01 Apr 2016 05:25 AM PDT The United States and its allies staged 17 strikes against Islamic State on Thursday in their latest round of daily attacks in Iraq and Syria against the militant group, the coalition leading the operations said. In Iraq, a dozen strikes near eight cities, hit six tactical units and destroyed several improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and an IED factory as well as seven vehicles and six assembly areas, the Combined Joint Task Force said in a statement on Friday. In Syria, five strikes near three cities hit three of the militants' tactical units.

Turkish warplanes hit targets in northern Iraq: military Posted: 01 Apr 2016 05:09 AM PDT ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish warplanes carried out air strikes in northern Iraq on Friday, the military said in a statement, destroying ammunition depots and shelters in an areas where the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) has camps. Four F-16 fighters destroyed targets in the Zap region this morning, it said. Later, eight F-4 jets hit targets in the Metina region, it said. ...

Germany's refugee crisis: A job-creation package in disguise? Posted: 01 Apr 2016 04:30 AM PDT Mayor Erich Spamer is under no illusions about the popularity of this town's new refugee center among some of his constituents. Recommended: How much do you know about Germany? Nine years after US forces left, the refugee center is bringing jobs and businesses to this town of 21,000 people.

Noisy US welcome as Erdogan defends hardline stance Posted: 01 Apr 2016 03:21 AM PDT Journalists and supporters of Kurdish militants scuffled and traded insults with Turkish guards protecting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Washington ahead of his meeting with US leader Barack Obama. A small group of protesters gathered Thursday outside the Washington think tank where the Turkish president was to speak, brandishing the banners of the YPG, a Kurdish militant group based in Syria. Ankara regards the YPG as an affiliate of the PKK, Turkey's main Kurdish separatist movement, and has declared it a terrorist threat.

Turkey Is Playing a Dangerous Game With ISIS as It Seeks Islamic Glory Posted: 01 Apr 2016 03:15 AM PDT For many months, Erdogan declined to join the coalition fighting the terrorists, and Turkey was considered a nominal ally in the war against terror. Then, last summer, Turkey joined the U.S. led campaign against ISIS. As a result, the terror group began targeting Turkey, and the U.S. government last September authorized the voluntary departure of 900 family members of personnel stationed at Incirlik air base and the U.S. consulate in Adana.

Muslim mothers fight 'toxic' merchants of terror Posted: 31 Mar 2016 11:24 PM PDT Not for one second did Syria enter my mind," Fatima Ezzarhouni told AFP. Almost three years on, Ezzarhouni gets the occasional phone call from her son confirming he's still alive, but never revealing his exact location. The so-called Mother Schools teach Muslim women how to spot early signs of radicalisation in children or develop coping mechanisms if the intervention comes too late.

Monaco, UK probe 'vast corruption scandal' in oil business Posted: 31 Mar 2016 06:53 PM PDT PARIS (AP) — Monaco's government says it is helping British authorities investigate a "vast corruption scandal" implicating an unspecified number of international oil companies, the tiny European principality said in a statement released late Thursday.

At once-stodgy VFW, a new portrait of America's changing military Posted: 31 Mar 2016 05:04 PM PDT "That would be an affirmative," says Alan Norton, a Vietnam vet gamely endeavoring a downward-facing dog in jeans and a short-sleeve button-up shirt. Now the post attracts scores of Iraq and Afghanistan-era vets, who come for classes on yoga, meditation, and a host of other offerings. For her part, Brittany Bartges tried to join the VFW once.

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