Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• U.S. oil falls on China economic woes, rising OPEC supply
• The Latest: Cruz campaign books country band for caucus bash
• Trump, Greek islanders in running for Nobel Prize
• Pentagon chief to unveil mini-drones, anti-IS funds: officials
• Nations gather in Rome to discuss anti-Islamic State push, Libya
• 4 ex-Blackwater contractors appeal convictions in shootings
• Accused ISIS plotter in North Carolina charged with earlier murder
• The Latest: Christie to NH: Cruz, Rubio, not ready to lead
• US General Calls 'Carpet Bombing' ISIS Against American Values
• Exclusive: Pentagon to hike spending request to fund fight versus Islamic State
• The Latest: Iowa temps to remain above freezing for caucuses
• U.S. envoy visits Kurdish-held northern Syria
• UN envoy declares start of Syria peace talks
• U.N. announces start of Syria peace talks as government troops advance
• Carpet-bombing in IS fight against 'our values': US general
• France and Belgium tighten security cooperation post attacks
• Turkey has spent $9 bn on refugees: Erdogan
• Greece arrests man with Iraqi passport stolen by Islamic State
• US commander: More US, coalition forces likely to fight IS
• This Photo Of A Boy In A Plastic Bag Messi Jersey Led To Him Meeting His Soccer Hero
• U.S. weighs options to speed Iraq's fight to retake Mosul
• The 2,001 things we like most in the world, according to Facebook
• Oil drops 6 percent on China data, slim chances of OPEC deal
• UN: Violence kills 849 across Iraq in January
• Greek grandmother, fisherman among Nobel Peace nominees
• Iraq oil exports up but revenue plunges on low prices
• EU to commit around 2 billion euros in Syrian aid at donor meeting
• British woman who took toddler to join IS in Syria jailed for six years
• The Top 2,001 Things Facebook Thinks We Care About
• U.S., allies conduct 13 air strikes in Iraq, five in Syria: coalition
• Germany opens first shelter for gay refugees
• Is Bernie Sanders a Hawk on Foreign Policy?
• Syria peace talks struggle to get off ground
• White House Brief: Things to know about GOP Sen. Rand Paul
• White House Brief: Things to know about Hillary Clinton
• White House Brief: Things to know about Jeb Bush
• Sarah Palin 'Today' Interview Gets Contentious: "You Guys Don't Always Keep Your Promises"
• Dozens killed by bombs in Syria, clouding UN peace session

U.S. oil falls on China economic woes, rising OPEC supply Posted: 01 Feb 2016 04:24 PM PST The front month contract for West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was down 28 cents at $31.34 as 0010 GMT after falling $2, or 5.9 percent, in the previous session. Crude prices fell after China's purchasing managers index dropped to a three-year low in January, coupled with rising oil supplies, ANZ said in a note on Tuesday. Output from OPEC rose to 33.1 million barrels per day last month as Indonesia's membership to the group was reactivated," the note added.

The Latest: Cruz campaign books country band for caucus bash Posted: 01 Feb 2016 04:12 PM PST DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The latest on developments in Monday's Iowa caucuses, the opening contest in the 2016 race for the White House (all local times):

Trump, Greek islanders in running for Nobel Prize Posted: 01 Feb 2016 03:37 PM PST Donald Trump, Greek islanders helping desperate migrants, Angela Merkel and the pope -- some may seem more likely than others but all are understood to be in the running for the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize. Nominations for the award, won last year by four Tunisian groups that led the country's transition to democracy, must be posted to Norway by February 1 at the latest. An online petition had on Monday picked up some 630,000 signatures calling for the Nobel to go the residents of Greek islands on the front line of Europe's migrant crisis, who have come to the aid of refugees turning up on their shores after perilous sea journeys from neighbouring Turkey.

Pentagon chief to unveil mini-drones, anti-IS funds: officials Posted: 01 Feb 2016 03:29 PM PST US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter will on Tuesday preview the Pentagon's plans for its 2017 budget, including extra cash to fight the Islamic State group, previously secret mini-drones and a beefed-up US presence in Europe's east. The base budget for fiscal year 2017 is expected to be $524 billion, augmented by $59 billion for an "overseas contingency fund" to pay for ongoing military actions in Afghanistan and against IS, defense officials told AFP on Monday. In a speech in Washington, Carter will highlight the world's changing "threat environment," one official said, including new risks presented by Russia since its 2014 annexation of Crimea and its subsequent support of pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine.

Nations gather in Rome to discuss anti-Islamic State push, Libya Posted: 01 Feb 2016 03:03 PM PST By Arshad Mohammed ROME (Reuters) - Nearly two dozen nations gather on Tuesday to plot their fight against the Islamic State militant group in Syria and Iraq and how to choke off its rise in Libya. The meeting takes place as talks have begun in Geneva to try to end the five-year Syrian civil war, which has killed at least 250,000 people, driven more than 10 million from their homes and drawn in the United States and Russia on opposite sides. Twenty-three nations from the wider Global Coalition to Counter ISIL will review their efforts to regain Syrian and Iraqi territory from the jihadist group and to discuss ways to curb its wider influence, notably in Libya, officials said.

4 ex-Blackwater contractors appeal convictions in shootings Posted: 01 Feb 2016 02:49 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — Four former Blackwater security contractors found guilty in a deadly Baghdad shooting appealed their convictions on Monday, saying a key witness against them had changed his testimony after the trial and that prosecutors lacked jurisdiction to even bring the case.

Accused ISIS plotter in North Carolina charged with earlier murder Posted: 01 Feb 2016 02:31 PM PST Justin Nojan Sullivan, 19, of Morganton, North Carolina, is charged with murder in the December 2014 slaying of John Bailey Clark, said Burke County District Attorney David Learner. Sullivan also faces seven federal charges related to supporting Islamic State and plotting murders, according to an 11-page federal indictment unsealed Monday. Islamic State is a militant group that controls parts of Syria and Iraq and has vowed attacks on the West.

The Latest: Christie to NH: Cruz, Rubio, not ready to lead Posted: 01 Feb 2016 02:29 PM PST DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) —

US General Calls 'Carpet Bombing' ISIS Against American Values Posted: 01 Feb 2016 02:15 PM PST While some Republican presidential candidates have suggested that "carpet bombing" ISIS would lead to a quick defeat of the terror group, the top U.S. military commander fighting ISIS doesn't think that's a good idea and "inconsistent with our values."Lt. General Sean MacFarland told Pentagon reporters today in a video-conference from Baghdad that the U.S. is bound by the laws of armed conflict and "at the end of the day, you know, it doesn't only matter whether or not you win, it matters how you win. ...

Exclusive: Pentagon to hike spending request to fund fight versus Islamic State Posted: 01 Feb 2016 02:01 PM PST President Barack Obama's administration will seek a significant increase in funding for the fight against Islamic State as part of its 2017 defense budget request, U.S. officials say, in another possible sign of U.S. efforts to intensify the campaign. The fiscal year 2017 Pentagon budget will call for more than $7 billion for the fight against Islamic State, a roughly 35 percent increase compared with the previous year's request to Congress, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity. U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter is due to disclose his spending priorities for the $583 billion 2017 defense budget on Tuesday in an address to the Economic Club of Washington.

The Latest: Iowa temps to remain above freezing for caucuses Posted: 01 Feb 2016 12:55 PM PST DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) —

U.S. envoy visits Kurdish-held northern Syria Posted: 01 Feb 2016 12:47 PM PST By Tom Perry and Arshad Mohammed BEIRUT/ROME (Reuters) - A U.S. envoy has visited Kurdish-controlled northern Syria in what appeared to be the first declared trip to Syrian territory by an Obama administration official in three years. The U.S. envoy to the coalition against Islamic State, Brett McGurk, said his weekend trip aimed to review the fight against the jihadist group that controls swathes of Syria and Iraq. The Syrian Kurds have established control over wide areas of northern Syria since the country erupted into civil war in 2011, and their YPG militia has become a major partner in the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State.

UN envoy declares start of Syria peace talks Posted: 01 Feb 2016 12:47 PM PST The UN envoy for Syria on Monday declared the official start of peace negotiations in Switzerland aimed at charting a way out of the brutal and tangled civil war that has killed more than 260,000 people. Speaking after his first formal meeting in Geneva with the main opposition grouping, Staffan de Mistura said that indirect talks between the government and the opposition are now "starting officially". The main opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC), here since late Saturday, had been reluctant about committing to a hoped-for six months of "proximity talks", using go-betweens to negotiate with the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

U.N. announces start of Syria peace talks as government troops advance Posted: 01 Feb 2016 12:43 PM PST By Tom Miles, John Irish, Tom Perry and Arshad Mohammed GENEVA/BEIRUT/ROME (Reuters) - The United Nations announced the formal start of peace talks for Syria on Monday and urged world powers to push for a ceasefire even as government forces, backed by Russian air strikes, launched their biggest offensive north of Aleppo in a year. Government troops and allied fighters captured hilly countryside near Aleppo on Monday, putting a key supply route used by opposition forces into firing range, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group.

Carpet-bombing in IS fight against 'our values': US general Posted: 01 Feb 2016 11:55 AM PST The commander of the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria on Monday dismissed calls to carpet-bomb the jihadists. "We are bound by the laws of armed conflict. It doesn't only matter whether or not you win, it matters how you win," Baghdad-based Lieutenant General Sean MacFarland told reporters in a video call.

France and Belgium tighten security cooperation post attacks Posted: 01 Feb 2016 11:53 AM PST BRUSSELS (Reuters) - France and Belgium vowed on Monday to intensify cooperation in the fight against Islamist radicals, including a more rapid exchange of information on potential militants and efforts to prevent forgery of documents. Two and a half months after the Paris attacks that killed 130 people, the two countries' prime ministers sought to improve ties strained by French accusations that neighbor Belgium had overlooked jihadists preparing to attack the French capital. ...

Turkey has spent $9 bn on refugees: Erdogan Posted: 01 Feb 2016 11:34 AM PST Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday his country has spent more than $9 billion on services for 2.5 million refugees from conflict-torn Syria and Iraq. "Turkey has opened its doors without distinction to more than 2.5 million Syrian and Iraqi refugees. Turkey has seen a massive influx of migrants as violence rages in neighboring Syria and Iraq.

Greece arrests man with Iraqi passport stolen by Islamic State Posted: 01 Feb 2016 11:03 AM PST An Iraqi Kurdish man has been arrested at Athens airport in possession of a passport known to have been among a haul of official documents stolen by Islamic State jihadists in Iraq, Greek police said Monday. The 37-year-old, who lives in Athens, was detained after flying in from the Turkish city of Istanbul on Sunday, police said in a statement. The passport was one of a batch of blank travel documents seized by IS fighters during a raid in Nineveh province, and subsequently cancelled by Iraqi authorities, the statement added.

US commander: More US, coalition forces likely to fight IS Posted: 01 Feb 2016 10:46 AM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — There is a "good potential" that more U.S. and coalition forces will be needed to fight the Islamic State group, the top commander of military operations in Iraq and Syria said Monday.

This Photo Of A Boy In A Plastic Bag Messi Jersey Led To Him Meeting His Soccer Hero Posted: 01 Feb 2016 10:32 AM PST The young fan in Afghanistan who was photographed wearing a hand-made plastic bag Messi jersey will have the opportunity to meet his hero.

U.S. weighs options to speed Iraq's fight to retake Mosul Posted: 01 Feb 2016 10:17 AM PST By Yeganeh Torbati and Phil Stewart WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is willing to deploy Apache attack helicopters and advisers to help Iraq retake the city of Mosul from Islamic State as it considers options to speed up the campaign against the militant group, a top U.S. general said on Monday. U.S. officials, including President Barack Obama, have said they want to accelerate the campaign against Islamic State militants, and have called on allies to increase their military contributions to efforts to destroy the group in Iraq and Syria.

The 2,001 things we like most in the world, according to Facebook Posted: 01 Feb 2016 09:42 AM PST Facebook is the most popular social network in the world. With over 1.4 billion users, Facebook has something for everybody and most users come back for more and more multiple times per day. Sure, the company mishandled user privacy in the past, but it's getting better all the time. And Facebook has plenty of other interesting services under its umbrella, including the Messenger and WhatsApp chat apps, the Instagram photo-based social network, and even the Oculus Rift VR initiative. To pay for all that, Facebook serves ads from third-parties to all of its users, and that's why it needs to collect plenty of data about users like and dislike. This way, the service can target ads more effectively. So, what do

Oil drops 6 percent on China data, slim chances of OPEC deal Posted: 01 Feb 2016 09:27 AM PST By Devika Krishna Kumar NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil prices fell 6 percent on Monday as weak economic data from China, the world's largest energy consumer, reversed a four-day rally from last week and an OPEC source undermined chances of an emergency meeting to stem the decline. China's manufacturing sector contracted at the fastest pace since 2012 in January, adding to worries about demand from the world's second-biggest economy at a time when the market is already weighed down by a large supply overhang. "China is the last standing consumer of oil outside of the U.S.. The problem is that everyone is relying on them," said Carl Larry, director of business development at Frost & Sullivan in Houston.

UN: Violence kills 849 across Iraq in January Posted: 01 Feb 2016 09:08 AM PST BAGHDAD (AP) — The United Nations says violence has claimed the lives of 849 Iraqis in January, down slightly from 980 the previous month.

Greek grandmother, fisherman among Nobel Peace nominees Posted: 01 Feb 2016 07:54 AM PST Four months later, she is among three people nominated for the Nobel prize to symbolically represent the "behavior and attitude of Greece, organizations and volunteers towards the huge refugee crisis". Fisherman Stratis Valiamos, who has rescued scores of refugees from drowning, and Hollywood actress Susan Sarandon, who spent Christmas helping refugees in Greece, were also nominated by Greek academics and the Hellenic Olympic Committee. The Norwegian Nobel Institute does not publish names of nominees, but Nobel watchers have said former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden and peace negotiators in Colombia have also been nominated.

Iraq oil exports up but revenue plunges on low prices Posted: 01 Feb 2016 07:43 AM PST Iraqi oil exports rose in January compared to the previous month but revenue fell by more than $650 million due to plunging crude prices, the oil ministry said on Monday. Baghdad is facing a financial crisis due to the fall in oil prices, which the ministry said averaged $22.21 in January -- less than half the amount projected in the 2016 budget. Iraq exported an average of 3.28 million barrels per day in January, up from 3.21 million in December, but monthly revenue fell from $2.92 billion to $2.26 billion, the ministry said in a statement.

EU to commit around 2 billion euros in Syrian aid at donor meeting Posted: 01 Feb 2016 07:12 AM PST The European Union is set to promise some 2 billion euros ($2.2 billion) in Syrian refugee aid at an international donor conference on Thursday, officials said, although much will be spent outside Syria barring an end to its civil war. European governments and EU institutions in Brussels are seeking to respond to a call by Britain, Germany and Norway, which are hosting the conference in London along with the United Nations and Kuwait, to double humanitarian aid to the region. "We need to ensure that all Syria's neighbors are supported," an EU official said, referring to Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq.

British woman who took toddler to join IS in Syria jailed for six years Posted: 01 Feb 2016 06:18 AM PST A British mother who took her 14-month-old son to Syria to join Islamic State fighters and allowed him to be photographed wearing a balaclava next to an assault rifle, was jailed for six years on Monday. Tareena Shakil, 26, left Britain in October 2014 and journeyed to the militant group's stronghold of Raqqa with the toddler, despite describing the Syrian city as the most dangerous place on earth, Birmingham Crown Court was told. Sentencing her to six years in prison, Judge Melbourne Inman said she had told lie after lie about her actions.

The Top 2,001 Things Facebook Thinks We Care About Posted: 01 Feb 2016 06:03 AM PST We've detailed a lot of our favorite things out of Facebook's new Audience Optimization tool, which provides over 282,000 listings of things that Facebook believes its users are interested in. Facebook designed its tools so that publishers can target audiences for their Facebook posts in the same way that advertisers do. But whatever — everybody knows what we really want is the list of the most popular things on Facebook. So here it is, or at least here are the first 2001 listings.

U.S., allies conduct 13 air strikes in Iraq, five in Syria: coalition Posted: 01 Feb 2016 05:39 AM PST The United States and its allies conducted 13 air strikes against Islamic State in Iraq and five in Syria on Sunday, the coalition leading the operations said. In Iraq, six of the strikes were near the contested city of Ramadi, where they hit three tactical units, five staging areas, two rocket rails, two fighting positions and a weapons cache, the Combined Joint Task Force said in a statement on Monday. There were three strikes near Mosul, two near Qayyarah, one near Kirkuk and one at Sinjar, destroying an Islamic State bunker, tactical units, vehicles and a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device, the coalition said.

Germany opens first shelter for gay refugees Posted: 01 Feb 2016 05:22 AM PST Germany opened Monday its first shelter for gay and lesbian refugees, as fears grew over threats to sexual minorities in overcrowded accommodations. The new housing in southern Germany's Nuremberg can host up to eight people, said Michael Glas, who runs an association called Fliederlich that started the initiative. "No one has moved in yet but it's a question of a day or two, the accommodation is ready," he told AFP.

Is Bernie Sanders a Hawk on Foreign Policy? Posted: 01 Feb 2016 03:00 AM PST The rebel candidate has consulted with hawks and shunned the left.

Syria peace talks struggle to get off ground Posted: 01 Feb 2016 12:51 AM PST The UN special envoy for Syria faced an uphill task in Geneva on Monday to get talks to end the brutal civil war off the ground, as the opposition hesitated to join negotiations with the regime. The blasts were claimed by Islamic State, the extremist group that is running swathes of Syria and Iraq which has launched attacks worldwide, including in Paris in November when 130 people were murdered. EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said the new atrocity in Syria was "clearly aimed to disrupt the attempts to start a political process".

White House Brief: Things to know about GOP Sen. Rand Paul Posted: 01 Feb 2016 12:35 AM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Rand Paul's populist campaign, based on advocacy of a smaller, less-nosy government, gained popularity at first but he soon faded. The Kentucky senator was among those bumped from the main debate stage because of low polling, but won readmission for the last debate before the Iowa caucuses. A look at the senator:

White House Brief: Things to know about Hillary Clinton Posted: 01 Feb 2016 12:32 AM PST DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Hillary Clinton finds herself in a surprisingly intense contest as her chief rival's late surge revives memories of her surprising loss to then-Illinois Sen. Barack Obama in Iowa in 2008. The former secretary of state is now offering harsher critiques of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, while working to avoid alienating supporters she would need in the general election. Here's a quick look at some things to know about her.

White House Brief: Things to know about Jeb Bush Posted: 01 Feb 2016 12:29 AM PST DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Jeb Bush has undergone a remarkable transformation in the past year, from well-connected Republican establishment favorite for the 2016 presidential nomination to nearly a bit player, fighting for political survival. A look at 62-year-old son and brother of former presidents:

Sarah Palin 'Today' Interview Gets Contentious: "You Guys Don't Always Keep Your Promises" Posted: 31 Jan 2016 09:00 PM PST The former Alaska governor's appearance on the NBC morning show took an awkward turn when the co-hosts brought up her comments regarding the arrest of her son, Track.

Dozens killed by bombs in Syria, clouding UN peace session Posted: 31 Jan 2016 04:17 PM PST GENEVA (AP) — A triple bombing killed at least 50 people in a predominantly Shiite suburb south of the Syrian capital of Damascus on Sunday even as a U.N. mediator held his first meeting with members of the main opposition group that seeks progress on humanitarian issues before it will join formal talks on ending the five-year civil war.

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