Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Rock star Bono seeks U.S. Senate backing for Mideast 'Marshall Plan'
• IS ranks at lowest level since 2014: US official
• Bono tells US senators aid is security, not charity
• Iraq border town freed from militants now isolated by war
• Clinton, Sanders race in New York takes on a tougher tone
• Pentagon wants drones to replace some US troops in Sinai
• Iraqi lawmakers protest after vote on new Cabinet is delayed
• Greece steps up evacuation of migrant border camp
• Six soldiers, 30 militants killed in southeast Turkey: security sources
• Iraqi parliament blocks PM's technocrat cabinet, postpones vote
• Far-right Austrian leader visits Israel's Holocaust memorial
• Young Arabs see Islamic State as biggest regional challenge: poll
• New York teen pleads guilty to non-terrorism charge in Islamic State case
• Iraq PM delivers new cabinet list, angering some MPs
• UPDATE 1-Soccer-Australia and Japan to square off again in qualifying
• Young Arabs say IS biggest regional challenge: poll
• UK says hundreds of Britons involved in people-smuggling
• Factbox: Suspects linked to the Paris, Brussels attacks
• Greece expects first asylum decisions under EU deal in two weeks
• Drink driver numbers 'alarming', Iranian official says
• Registration Opens for Wounded Warrior Project Community Ride
• Australia draw Japan in World Cup qualifying
• U.S. leads 13 strikes against Islamic State in Iraq, Syria: statement
• Australia, Japan in Group B for Asian World Cup qualifying
• Syrian Kurds in six-month countdown to federalism
• Young Arabs Overwhelmingly Reject Daesh (ISIS) and Believe the Group Will Fail to Establish an Islamic State
• As Islamic State is pushed back in Iraq, worries about what's next

Rock star Bono seeks U.S. Senate backing for Mideast 'Marshall Plan' Posted: 12 Apr 2016 04:17 PM PDT By Patricia Zengerle and Lesley Wroughton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U2 lead singer Bono appealed to Congress on Tuesday for a "Marshall Plan" to provide aid to the Middle East much like the massive relief the United States provided to rebuild Europe and counter extremism after World War Two. "When aid is structured properly, with a focus on fighting poverty and improving governance, it could just be the best bulwark we have against the extremism of our age," the rock star and anti-poverty campaigner testified to the Senate Appropriations subcommittee that oversees foreign aid. Bono urged U.S. lawmakers to act quickly to counteract "an existential crisis" in Europe, with nationalist parties rising in several countries and even Britain considering leaving the European Union.

IS ranks at lowest level since 2014: US official Posted: 12 Apr 2016 02:51 PM PDT The Islamic State group's ranks have been pared back by international and local military action in Iraq and Syria to their lowest level since Washington began monitoring the group, a senior official said Tuesday. The comments from deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken came one day before President Barack Obama was due to convene his national security team at CIA headquarters to take stock of the anti-IS fight. "Working by, with and through local partners, we have taken back 40 percent of the territory that Daesh controlled a year ago in Iraq and 10 percent in Syria," Blinken told US lawmakers in prepared testimony.

Bono tells US senators aid is security, not charity Posted: 12 Apr 2016 01:21 PM PDT The United States should not see the aid money it spends abroad as charity but as a vital national security tool, Irish rock star Bono told US lawmakers Tuesday. Addressing a Senate sub-committee that oversees funding for campaigns against violent extremism, Bono said he had recently met with refugees in Africa and the Middle East. "The fact is that aid can no longer be seen as charity, as a nice thing to do when we can afford it," said Bono, U2 frontman and founder of the anti-poverty campaign One.

Iraq border town freed from militants now isolated by war Posted: 12 Apr 2016 12:47 PM PDT RABIA, Iraq (AP) — Outside the police station, Iraqi men in robes and headscarves wait for permits to leave the dusty border town of Rabia, which was wrested from the Islamic State group 18 months ago but remains isolated and impoverished by the battle lines drawn around it.

Clinton, Sanders race in New York takes on a tougher tone Posted: 12 Apr 2016 12:46 PM PDT ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) — When he launched his longshot presidential bid last year, Bernie Sanders often said he liked Hillary Clinton but disagreed with her on issues. A year later, the Democratic primary candidate and his supporters seem to be finding a lot less to like.

Pentagon wants drones to replace some US troops in Sinai Posted: 12 Apr 2016 12:36 PM PDT The Pentagon wants to cut the number of US peacekeeping troops in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, partly because of the growing threat from the Islamic State group, an official said Tuesday. About 700 US troops participate in a UN operation established after Israel and Egypt signed a 1979 peace deal and agreed for a Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) mission to monitor compliance. Pentagon spokesman Navy Captain Jeff Davis said the Pentagon remains "fully committed" to the MFO mission but wants to use drones and other high-tech tools to assume some of the riskier work.

Iraqi lawmakers protest after vote on new Cabinet is delayed Posted: 12 Apr 2016 12:32 PM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi lawmakers staged a protest inside the country's parliament on Tuesday after a vote on new Cabinet nominees proposed by the prime minister was postponed earlier in the day.

Greece steps up evacuation of migrant border camp Posted: 12 Apr 2016 11:56 AM PDT Around 700 migrants have agreed to leave a squalid camp on Greece's border with Macedonia since violence broke out at the weekend when a group of migrants tried to storm the frontier, sources said Tuesday. "On Monday, seven buses carrying 300 people left Idomeni," where over 11,000 people had been camped out for weeks in the hope of the sealed border being re-opened, a police source told AFP. Greece has for weeks been trying to convince the migrants to move to reception camps but until now they had refused to leave.

Six soldiers, 30 militants killed in southeast Turkey: security sources Posted: 12 Apr 2016 10:06 AM PDT By Seyhmus Cakan DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) - Six Turkish soldiers and 30 Kurdish militants have been killed in the past 24 hours in attacks and clashes across Turkey's turbulent southeast region, security sources and the army said on Tuesday. Thousands of militants and hundreds of civilians and soldiers have been killed since the banned Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) resumed its insurgency last summer following a 2-1/2-year ceasefire and peace process. The government has ruled out any return to the negotiating table and has vowed to crush the PKK, which is considered a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies.

Iraqi parliament blocks PM's technocrat cabinet, postpones vote Posted: 12 Apr 2016 10:04 AM PDT By Saif Hameed BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's parliament blocked a cabinet of independent technocrats Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi had proposed, as political factions forced him to adopt some their own ministerial candidates instead, MPs said. The previous nominee as oil minister was a Kurdish geologist who withdrew his candidacy under pressure from the political hadn't had a chance to vet his nomination.

Far-right Austrian leader visits Israel's Holocaust memorial Posted: 12 Apr 2016 09:57 AM PDT By Luke Baker JERUSALEM (Reuters) - The leader of Austria's far-right Freedom Party, Heinz-Christian Strache, visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem on Tuesday, laying a wreath under the engraved names of towns in Austria from where Jews were expelled by the Nazis. Strache's party, which last year expelled a member of its parliamentary group for anti-Semitic comments, has sought to redress the worst of its past while retaining popular support with outspoken opposition to Muslim migration. During his visit, Strache kept a Fedora hat firmly on his head as a sign of respect and declined to answer questions.

Young Arabs see Islamic State as biggest regional challenge: poll Posted: 12 Apr 2016 09:17 AM PDT Islamic State has declared a "caliphate" over swathes of Iraq and Syria it occupies, has established branches in conflict-ridden Libya and Yemen and has also carried out a series of deadly attacks in western Europe and Arab Gulf states. The annual survey of people in the 18-24 age bracket across 16 Arab countries showed half of the respondents saw Islamic State as the biggest challenge for the region, up from 37 percent in the 2015 poll and well above other issues such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and lack of democracy. Asked if they could imagine supporting Islamic State - also known by its Arabic acronym Daesh - if it used less violence, 78 percent of respondents said they could not, while 13 percent said they could and nine percent said they did not know.

New York teen pleads guilty to non-terrorism charge in Islamic State case Posted: 12 Apr 2016 09:01 AM PDT A New York City teenager accused last year of helping a college student plan an Islamic State-inspired plot to set off a pressure cooker bomb in the city has pleaded guilty to a non-terrorism charge of conspiring to impede federal officers. Imran Rabbani, who was 17 when he was arrested in June, pleaded guilty on Friday in federal court in Brooklyn, a spokeswoman for U.S. Attorney Robert Capers said late on Monday. As part of a plea deal, Rabbani agreed to drop an appeal of a November ruling allowing him to be tried as an adult for a prior charge of conspiring to provide material support to Islamic State, said his lawyer, Richard Willstatter.

Iraq PM delivers new cabinet list, angering some MPs Posted: 12 Apr 2016 08:52 AM PDT Iraq's premier presented a new list of cabinet nominees on Tuesday that angered some lawmakers, who criticised it as perpetuating the system of ministries being distributed according to political quotas. Parliament descended into chaos after the session was postponed to Thursday, with lawmakers shaking fists and chanting against political quotas and then beginning a sit-in. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has called for a government of technocrats to replace the current party-affiliated ministers, but has faced major resistance from powerful parties that rely on control of ministries for patronage and funds.

UPDATE 1-Soccer-Australia and Japan to square off again in qualifying Posted: 12 Apr 2016 08:51 AM PDT (Corrects date of Saudi Arabia's last World Cup appearance to 2006 from 2002, para 12) * Four Asian champions drawn together * Iran-Saudi kept apart KUALA LUMPUR, April 12 (Reuters) - Continental champions Australia were pooled in a formidable Group B with Saudi Arabia, Japan and the United Arab Emirates in the draw for the final Asian round of 2018 World Cup qualifying on Tuesday. Joining the quartet in the six nation group, where only the top two sides are guaranteed of a place at the finals in Russia, were 2007 Asian champions Iraq and fast-improving Thailand. Group A was headlined by consistent qualifiers South Korea and Asia's top ranked team Iran, who both represented the continent at the last World Cup in Brazil along with Australia and Japan.

Young Arabs say IS biggest regional challenge: poll Posted: 12 Apr 2016 08:25 AM PDT Young Arab people see the rise of the Islamic State group as "the single biggest challenge" in the region, a survey published Tuesday said, with respondents prioritising stability over democracy. The Arab Spring uprisings that started in Tunisia with calls for democratic reform have spiralled into conflict and chaos in several countries across the region.

UK says hundreds of Britons involved in people-smuggling Posted: 12 Apr 2016 08:17 AM PDT LONDON (AP) — A top-level UK National Crime Agency task force charged with breaking up people-smuggling gangs has determined that hundreds of Britons are working with overseas organized crime gangs to facilitate the trade in people fleeing poverty and war.

Factbox: Suspects linked to the Paris, Brussels attacks Posted: 12 Apr 2016 08:06 AM PDT Following the Islamic State attacks in Brussels on March 22, below is a list of principal suspects and, in some cases, their links to the Nov. 13 Paris attacks: * Khalid El Bakraoui, 27, Belgian, blew himself up on a metro train at Maelbeek station. On the run since breaking parole again in October, he used fake ID to rent an apartment in Charleroi that was used as a safe house by some of the Paris attackers. * Brahim El Bakraoui, 29, Belgian, blew himself up at Brussels airport.

Greece expects first asylum decisions under EU deal in two weeks Posted: 12 Apr 2016 07:15 AM PDT By Karolina Tagaris ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece said authorities would start ruling on asylum applications from hundreds of migrants in the next two weeks, in a major test of a new deal to try to control the flow of people desperate to reach Europe. Many of them are refugees from war, but others are economic migrants. Asylum applications have been piling up since March, when the European Union and Turkey signed an agreement intended to close off the main route into Europe, has seen an influx of over a million refugees and migrants since last year.

Drink driver numbers 'alarming', Iranian official says Posted: 12 Apr 2016 07:09 AM PDT Police in Tehran arrested 2,900 drink drivers last year, a top official said Tuesday, describing the figures, which come despite the Islamic republic's official prohibition of alcohol, as "alarming". The offenders were detained in the 12 months up to March 2016, the Iranian capital's prosecutor general Abbas Jafarabadi said, according to the judiciary's official news service. Alcohol has been banned in Iran since the revolution in 1979 and those who break the law can be fined, lashed or serve prison time.

Registration Opens for Wounded Warrior Project Community Ride Posted: 12 Apr 2016 05:43 AM PDT BOSTON, April 12, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Registration is now open for the public to participate in Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) Soldier Ride® Community Rides that will take place this summer across the northeast. Soldier Ride Community Rides are more than just cycling events; they're an experience and provide the opportunity to support by pedaling alongside our nation's bravest men and women.Boston will host its Soldier Ride Community Ride in September. Soldier Ride gives our nation's heroes begin their journey toward a strong recovery with fellow injured veterans. ...

Australia draw Japan in World Cup qualifying Posted: 12 Apr 2016 04:49 AM PDT Asian champions Australia landed in the same group as heavyweights Japan on Tuesday as teams were drawn for the final stage of regional qualifying for the 2018 World Cup. Ange Postecoglou's Socceroos will also face Iraq, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and minnows Thailand in Group B when games start in September. Sleeping giants China, who scraped into the third round after a stop-start qualifying campaign so far, have a tough assignment against Iran and South Korea in Group A.

U.S. leads 13 strikes against Islamic State in Iraq, Syria: statement Posted: 12 Apr 2016 04:28 AM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and its allies stages 13 strikes on Monday against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria in the coalition's latest daily attack against the militant group, a U.S. military statement said on Tuesday. Nine strikes hit near four Iraqi cities - Hit, Mosul, Qayyarah and Sinjar - destroying 21 of the militants' fighting positions and three tactical units, among other targets, the Combined Joint Task Force said. ...

Australia, Japan in Group B for Asian World Cup qualifying Posted: 12 Apr 2016 03:51 AM PDT KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Asian Cup champion Australia and Japan have been grouped together in the last round of Asian qualifying for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Syrian Kurds in six-month countdown to federalism Posted: 12 Apr 2016 01:06 AM PDT By Tom Perry BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian Kurds and their allies aim to finalize plans within six months for an autonomous political federation in northern Syria, pressing ahead despite the objections of foreign governments which fear Syria's disintegration. While talks to end the five-year conflict in Syria struggle, the plans are taking shape independently of United Nations-led diplomacy and creating facts on the ground in an area of the country known in Kurdish as Rojava. Hadiya Yousef, a Kurdish official leading efforts to build the new government, says it is time the West gave its full backing to a plan she says is not aimed at Kurdish secession but at helping to resolve the Syrian crisis.

Young Arabs Overwhelmingly Reject Daesh (ISIS) and Believe the Group Will Fail to Establish an Islamic State Posted: 12 Apr 2016 12:40 AM PDT DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, April 12, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Arab youth say the rise of Daesh (ISIS) remains the single biggest challenge facing the Middle East, but young people in the region overwhelmingly reject the extremist group and believe it will fail to establish an Islamic state. The majority of young Arabs (53 percent) agree that promoting stability in the region is more important than promoting democracy (28 percent).  At the same time, two thirds are calling for their leaders to do more to improve their personal freedoms and human rights.

As Islamic State is pushed back in Iraq, worries about what's next Posted: 11 Apr 2016 10:06 PM PDT By Jonathan Landay, Warren Strobel and Phil Stewart WASHINGTON (Reuters) - As U.S.-led offensives drive back Islamic State in Iraq, concern is growing among U.S. and U.N. officials that efforts to stabilize liberated areas are lagging, creating conditions that could help the militants endure as an underground network. One major worry: not enough money is being committed to rebuild the devastated provincial capital of Ramadi and other towns, let alone Islamic State-held Mosul, the ultimate target in Iraq of the U.S.-led campaign. Lise Grande, the No. 2 U.N. official in Iraq, told Reuters that the United Nations is urgently seeking $400 million from Washington and its allies for a new fund to bolster reconstruction in cities like Ramadi, which suffered vast damage when U.S.-backed Iraqi forces recaptured it in December.

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