Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Vanderbilt honors slain student with scholarship
• Gender barrier falls as Air Force general named combatant chief
• Experts: IS expanding its global reach through social media
• The moral action in naming genocide
• EU, Turkey strike heralded migrant deal but costs are high
• Virginia man pleads guilty to trying to join Islamic State
• Salah Abdeslam: pot-smoking enigma of Paris attacks
• Is migrant crisis swinging back to Libya?
• Paris attack cell stretched from Europe to Syria and back
• Two more children die after Iraq chemical attack
• American IS fighter: I made a bad decision
• Shiite cleric takes lead role in Iraq's protest movement
• This Tiny Island Shelters a History of Human Rights Abuse
• Finland sentences Iraqi man in rare war crime case
• Germany arrests suspected IS fighter returning from Syria
• Syrian rebels condemn Kurdish-led moves toward regional autonomy
• For many US Christians, ISIS genocide designation is a big deal
• US Senators meet Polish president amid rising strains
• American citizen recounts his time with ISIS
• AP PHOTOS: Editor selections from the Middle East
• Senate confirms Army generals for key military posts
• Greek minister likens Idomeni refugee camp to Dachau
• Shi'ite cleric's followers begin anti-corruption sit-in in Baghdad
• Syria shaky truce allows for rallies against al-Qaida branch
• U.S. Man Gets Longest-Ever Sentence for Supporting ISIS
• U.S., allies target Islamic State with 20 strikes in Syria, Iraq: statement
• Obama looks to seal Cuba engagement on landmark trip
• Today in History
• American Islamic State fighter chose to surrender to Kurds: TV

Vanderbilt honors slain student with scholarship Posted: 18 Mar 2016 04:16 PM PDT NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Vanderbilt University on Friday announced a new scholarship to the Owen Graduate School of Management in honor of Taylor Force, the Vanderbilt graduate student killed in Israel on a study tour earlier this month.

Gender barrier falls as Air Force general named combatant chief Posted: 18 Mar 2016 03:38 PM PDT For the first time ever, a woman has been tapped to head a US military combatant command, one of the most senior jobs in the armed services. Combatant command jobs are among the most prestigious in the US military, overseeing one of six regions. Obama's plan to nominate Robinson – a nomination that is subject to Senate confirmation—shows "that we have, coming along now, a lot of female officers who are exceptionally strong," Carter said Friday at a Politico event.

Experts: IS expanding its global reach through social media Posted: 18 Mar 2016 03:25 PM PDT FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — Law enforcement officials believe the San Bernardino massacre and a stabbing attack on a California college campus were done by lone wolves inspired by the Islamic State group, and counterterrorism experts say both show how the organization is expanding its reach through social media.

The moral action in naming genocide Posted: 18 Mar 2016 02:28 PM PDT Under pressure from Congress, the Obama administration declared on March 17 that the Islamic State has committed genocide against groups in areas under its control, including Yazidis, Christians, and Shiite Muslims. The designation is only a legal stance, one based on a 1948 international treaty written after the Holocaust. Four times in the past, the US has designated mass killing as genocide: in Cambodia in 1989, Bosnia in 1993, Rwanda in 1994, and Sudan in 2004.

EU, Turkey strike heralded migrant deal but costs are high Posted: 18 Mar 2016 02:23 PM PDT BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union and Turkish leaders celebrated a "historic day" after sealing a widely-criticized pact to send thousands of asylum-seekers back to Turkey — a deal that will cost millions and require the rapid dispatch of thousands of experts to Greece to undertake the complicated task of making the plan a reality.

Virginia man pleads guilty to trying to join Islamic State Posted: 18 Mar 2016 02:22 PM PDT A Virginia man pleaded guilty in U.S. federal court on Friday to trying to join Islamic State in Syria earlier this year, becoming the fourth American this week to be convicted of attempting to support the group. Joseph Hassan Farrokh, 28, a U.S. citizen from Woodbridge, Virginia, admitted that he attempted to fly to Jordan in January in order to cross into Syria and fight for Islamic State, in a plea agreement hearing at the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, in Alexandria.

Salah Abdeslam: pot-smoking enigma of Paris attacks Posted: 18 Mar 2016 01:58 PM PDT Salah Abdeslam, the key suspect in the Paris attacks arrested on Friday, showed little sign of religious fervour before the assaults and was even known to enjoy a beer and a joint in the bar he ran with his brother in the Brussels district where he was captured. The 26-year-old Franco-Moroccan, whose brother Brahim blew himself up in the French capital during the November 13 attacks, is said to have fled into the arms of the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria but he was eventually tracked down to Molenbeek, the immigrant neighbourhood where he had lived for years. The bar was shut down two weeks before the Paris attacks after police said it was used "for the consumption of banned hallucinogenic substances".

Is migrant crisis swinging back to Libya? Posted: 18 Mar 2016 01:54 PM PDT European fears are mounting that Libya could once again become a hotspot in the migrant crisis, with several thousand people who fled from the troubled country rescued in the southern Mediterranean this week alone. Analysts warn that the Islamic State group -- which has significantly expanded its control in Libya -- could send jihadists to mingle with those trying to reach Europe. The coast of the north African state has for several years been one of the main launch points for migrants, many escaping the chaos that erupted after longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi was ousted and killed in 2011.

Paris attack cell stretched from Europe to Syria and back Posted: 18 Mar 2016 01:46 PM PDT PARIS (AP) — Police, prosecutors, friends, families and acquaintances have unveiled details about the men who carried out the Nov. 13 attacks in Paris. Altogether, authorities say that three teams participated in the bloody assault. Here is a look at what we know about the suspects:

Two more children die after Iraq chemical attack Posted: 18 Mar 2016 01:21 PM PDT Two more children have died of wounds suffered in a suspected jihadist chemical attack last week in Iraq, an official said on Friday, raising the death toll to three. "We recorded the death this evening of a 10-year-old girl," said Hussein Abbas, the mayor of Taza, a town south of Kirkuk that was targeted by rockets armed with suspected mustard agent. Officials have charged that IS used mustard agent in the attack.

American IS fighter: I made a bad decision Posted: 18 Mar 2016 01:12 PM PDT IRBIL, Iraq (AP) — The American Islamic State group fighter who handed himself over to Kurdish forces in northern Iraq earlier this week said he made "a bad decision" in joining the IS, according to a heavily edited interview he gave to an Iraqi Kurdish television station.

Shiite cleric takes lead role in Iraq's protest movement Posted: 18 Mar 2016 12:21 PM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — Thousands of supporters of an influential Iraqi Shiite cleric took to Baghdad streets on Friday following his demands for government reforms, pushing through security checkpoints and surging over a bridge on the Tigris River to set up a sit-in outside the Green Zone, the heavily secured government compound.

This Tiny Island Shelters a History of Human Rights Abuse Posted: 18 Mar 2016 11:31 AM PDT In the middle of the Indian Ocean lies a relatively unknown island by the name of Diego Garcia. The island was confiscated in 1966 from the local population of Chagossians in secret deals between the governments of the U.S. and U.K., resulting in the forced displacement of more than 2,000. This year, the 50-year contract between the U.S. and the U.K. is up for renewal—a pivotal moment for the Chagossian refugees who have had to relocate around the world but have long hoped to return home.

Finland sentences Iraqi man in rare war crime case Posted: 18 Mar 2016 09:24 AM PDT HELSINKI (AP) — A Finnish court has given an Iraqi man a 16-month suspended sentence in a rare war crime case where the defendant was found guilty of degrading a deceased enemy soldier.

Germany arrests suspected IS fighter returning from Syria Posted: 18 Mar 2016 09:19 AM PDT German police have arrested a 22-year-old German national who they suspect was returning from Syria after fighting for the militant group Islamic State in the country's civil war, Germany's federal prosecutor's office said on Friday. The man, named only as Tarik Suleymann S. due to German privacy laws, traveled to Syria in November 2013 and joined IS by January 2014 before being arrested at Frankfurt airport on Wednesday, the prosecutor's office said in a statement.

Syrian rebels condemn Kurdish-led moves toward regional autonomy Posted: 18 Mar 2016 09:02 AM PDT Syrian rebel factions on Friday condemned a declaration of federalism in Kurdish-controlled regions of northern Syria and vowed to resist it by force, a day after those areas voted to seek autonomy. A statement from a number of Syrian insurgent groups, some of whom are represented in the main opposition body that is participating in peace talks, said the federalism announcement was a "project to divide" Syria. Syria's Kurdish-controlled northern regions voted on Thursday to seek autonomy under a federal system, drawing rebukes from the main opposition's High Negotiations Committee, the Damascus government, Turkey and Washington.

For many US Christians, ISIS genocide designation is a big deal Posted: 18 Mar 2016 08:40 AM PDT After United States Secretary of State John Kerry took the rare step to call Islamic State atrocities in Iraq and Syria a "genocide" on Thursday, Jerry Johnson saw it as a victory for the many evangelical Christians who have been calling for the use of this term for some time. "I was very happy to see Secretary of State Kerry speak out and speak up – and I think he was good," says Dr. Johnson, an ethicist. "And I think many Christians and other people of good will have pressured him to do it," noting that there's been "strong Evangelical consensus" to label the atrocities of ISIS as a full-on genocide.

US Senators meet Polish president amid rising strains Posted: 18 Mar 2016 08:32 AM PDT WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The United States has long been an indispensable Polish ally — a friend in the struggle to overthrow communism and join NATO, a steady partner in times of tension with other European countries, the ultimate guarantor of security against Russia.

American citizen recounts his time with ISIS Posted: 18 Mar 2016 07:39 AM PDT Going to Iraq was a "bad decision," said a 26-year-old Virginia man who was taken into custody by Kurdish military forces after deserting Islamic State (IS). "It was pretty hard to live in Mosul," the IS recruit said. Recommended: How much do you know about the Islamic State?

AP PHOTOS: Editor selections from the Middle East Posted: 18 Mar 2016 07:36 AM PDT Here are the highlights from the weekly AP photo report from the Middle East, Afghanistan and Pakistan — a selection of news, fashion and daily life photos from the region you might have missed.

Senate confirms Army generals for key military posts Posted: 18 Mar 2016 07:03 AM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate has confirmed President Barack Obama's choices to lead two of the military's most important warfighting commands.

Greek minister likens Idomeni refugee camp to Dachau Posted: 18 Mar 2016 06:54 AM PDT Greece's interior minister on Friday likened the grim camp holding thousands of refugees on the border with Macedonia to the Nazi concentration camp Dachau. "I do not hesitate to say that this is a modern-day Dachau, a result of the logic of closed borders," Panagiotis Kouroublis said in televised remarks from the squalid Idomeni camp. Solidarity protests are to be held in Greece on Saturday in main cities, part of a broader European movement to mark the United Nations' anti-racism day.

Shi'ite cleric's followers begin anti-corruption sit-in in Baghdad Posted: 18 Mar 2016 05:46 AM PDT By Saif Hameed BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Supporters of Iraq's powerful Shi'ite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr began a sit-in outside the walls of Baghdad's fortified Green Zone on Friday to press the government to see through a move to stem endemic corruption. Leveraging his ability to mobilize grassroots pressure on the government, Sadr wants Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to replace cabinet ministers with non-party technocrats to tackle systemic political patronage that has fostered graft. Sadr rejected calls to cancel the sit-in prompted by fears of clashes between his supporters and security forces guarding the highly sensitive Green Zone, which hosts major government offices and foreign embassies in the Iraqi capital.

Syria shaky truce allows for rallies against al-Qaida branch Posted: 18 Mar 2016 05:18 AM PDT BEIRUT (AP) — With Syria's shaky cease-fire holding, peaceful protesters have yet again taken to the streets in opposition-held areas of the country. But this time, in addition to President Bashar Assad's government, they have another despised authority they seek to topple — al-Qaida's affiliate in the country, the oppressive Nusra Front.

U.S. Man Gets Longest-Ever Sentence for Supporting ISIS Posted: 18 Mar 2016 05:17 AM PDT Mufid Elfgeeh, 32, of Rochester was sentenced to 22 years in prison for attempting to recruit fighters for ISIS.

U.S., allies target Islamic State with 20 strikes in Syria, Iraq: statement Posted: 18 Mar 2016 04:36 AM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and its allies conducted 20 strikes against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria on Thursday, the coalition leading the operations said. In a statement released on Friday, the Combined Joint Task Force said nine strikes near three cities in Syria hit several tactical units, destroyed fighting positions and a vehicle-borne explosive device, and damaged other targets. In Iraq, 11 strikes near seven cities targeted headquarters and tactical units and destroyed vehicles, heavy machine gun positions, a tunnel and other targets, the statement said. ...

Obama looks to seal Cuba engagement on landmark trip Posted: 17 Mar 2016 10:42 PM PDT Barack Obama touches down in Havana on Sunday to cap a long-unimaginable rapprochement with Cuba and burnish a presidential legacy dulled by Middle East quagmires and partisan sniping. As Air Force One rolls to a stop, Obama will become the first sitting US president to visit Cuba since Calvin Coolidge arrived on a battleship in 1928, before the discovery of penicillin or invention of the ballpoint pen. With wife Michelle and daughters Sasha and Malia in tow, Obama will tour Old Havana, sit down with Raul Castro -- although not his brother Fidel -- and speak directly to Cubans who have been inculcated in a lifetime of propaganda against imperialist Yankees.

Today in History Posted: 17 Mar 2016 10:01 PM PDT Today is Friday, March 18, the 78th day of 2016. There are 288 days left in the year.

American Islamic State fighter chose to surrender to Kurds: TV Posted: 17 Mar 2016 07:19 PM PDT (Reuters) - A 26-year-old American man who was captured by Kurdish forces in Iraq earlier this week, said he had traveled from Turkey to join Islamic State before deciding to escape, according to an interview with Kurdish television on Thursday. Two Kurdish militia officers said on Monday an American, bearded and dressed in black, had surrendered after being surrounded near the village of Golat, in northern Iraq. The man's Virginia drivers license identified him as Kweis Mohammed Jamal.

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