Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• DOJ: Vet's Purple Heart lies cost government $752,000
• Canada sees more extremists, including women, traveling abroad
• Iraq forces retake key town south of Mosul
• U.S. Navy ship fires warning shots at Iranian vessel
• GOP governor: Most drug dealers arrested are black, Hispanic
• The Latest: Governor defends stance on minority drug dealers
• Turkey sends more tanks to Syria, insists on Kurdish retreat
• The Myth of the 'Female' Foreign Policy
• The Latest: Turkish artillery strikes Syrian Kurdish militia
• The Radical Anti-Conservatism of Stephen Bannon
• IS FIGHTING
• Kerry in Saudi Arabia for talks on Yemen, Syria conflicts
• Iraq, Syria discuss securing border as Islamic State retreats
• Proof of Life: ISIS Hostage Kayla Mueller's Heartbreaking Never-Before-Seen Video Message From Captivity
• Iraqi defense minister sacked as Mosul battle looms
• Iraqi defense minister gets no-confidence vote
• Portugal wants Iraq to waive diplomat sons' immunity after beating
• Erdogan to inaugurate Istanbul's third Bosphorus bridge
• Iraq parliament impeaches defence minister
• Zawahri urges Iraq Sunnis to wage guerrilla war as IS loses more land
• Amid quake's devastation, Italians tap experience to swing into action
• Attack on American University in Afghanistan leaves 13 dead
• Turkish opposition leader targeted by Kurdish militants - minister
• Iran minister defends encounter with U.S. warship
• Asylum claims in Britain highest in more than a decade
• In Iran, unique system allows payments for kidney donors
• Iraq army captures Qayyara oil region from IS, Abadi says
• Asylum claims in Britain in first half of 2016 highest in more than a decade
• Syrian Kurdish YPG says it returned to base after Manbij's capture
• China military says it is providing medical training for Syria
• U.S. tells Turkey Syrian Kurdish YPG moving back to east of Euphrates: sources
• Syria's Kurds: An embattled US ally in a complex civil war
• Soldier who killed 5 Dallas officers showed PTSD symptoms
• Planes hovering above Baltimore right now are recording every move people make
• Iran vessels make 'high speed intercept' of U.S. ship: U.S. official
• Kerry in Saudi talks on Yemen, Syria, Libya

DOJ: Vet's Purple Heart lies cost government $752,000 Posted: 25 Aug 2016 05:10 PM PDT TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — Federal prosecutors say a former soldier who lied his way to a Purple Heart by faking injuries from the Iraq War cheated Washington state and the federal government out of more than $750,000 — about three times what investigators cited when they first charged him with fraud in 2014.

Canada sees more extremists, including women, traveling abroad Posted: 25 Aug 2016 03:10 PM PDT The number of people who have traveled overseas from Canada and are suspected of involvement in radical activities has grown, security officials said in a report that found the number of women leaving to join Islamic State was also on the rise. At the end of 2015, 60 of what Canada calls "extremist travelers" had returned to the country, according to the annual report released on Thursday by Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale. Goodale has overall responsibility for law enforcement, including the RCMP and Canadian Security Intelligence Service.

Iraq forces retake key town south of Mosul Posted: 25 Aug 2016 03:09 PM PDT Iraqi forces on Thursday pushed the Islamic State group from Qayyarah, a northern town considered strategic for any future offensive against the jihadists' last stronghold of Mosul. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi hailed the victory as a key step in the fight against IS but hours later suffered yet another political setback when lawmakers impeached his defence minister. Special forces, backed by US-led coalition air strikes, wrapped up a three-day operation to retake Qayyarah, a town located on the banks of the Tigris river.

U.S. Navy ship fires warning shots at Iranian vessel Posted: 25 Aug 2016 02:46 PM PDT By Idrees Ali WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. Navy ship fired warning shots toward an Iranian fast-attack craft that approached two U.S. ships, a Pentagon spokesman said on Thursday, in the most serious of a number of incidents in the Gulf area this week. "They did feel compelled ultimately to fire three warning shots and the reason for that is... they had taken steps already to try and de-escalate this situation," spokesman Peter Cook told reporters. Tensions have increased in the Gulf in recent days despite an improvement in relations between Iran and the United States.

GOP governor: Most drug dealers arrested are black, Hispanic Posted: 25 Aug 2016 02:26 PM PDT NORTH BERWICK, Maine (AP) — Republican Gov. Paul LePage is being accused again of making racially insensitive comments, this time by saying photos he's collected in a binder of drug dealers arrested in the state show more than 90 percent of them are black or Hispanic.

The Latest: Governor defends stance on minority drug dealers Posted: 25 Aug 2016 01:53 PM PDT NORTH BERWICK, Maine (AP) — The Latest on comments by Maine Republican Gov. Paul LePage (all times local):

Turkey sends more tanks to Syria, insists on Kurdish retreat Posted: 25 Aug 2016 01:42 PM PDT ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey sent more tanks into northern Syria on Thursday and gave Syrian Kurdish forces a week to scale back their presence near the Turkish border, a day after it launched a U.S.-backed cross-border incursion to establish a frontier zone free of the Islamic State group and Kurdish rebels.

The Myth of the 'Female' Foreign Policy Posted: 25 Aug 2016 01:23 PM PDT Margot Wallström took office as Sweden's foreign minister in 2014, declaring she would pursue a "feminist foreign policy." She's now held the post for two years, and it's still not entirely clear what she meant. While it's true that an entire school of feminist international-relations theory has developed since the 1980s, the field remains contested, and largely untested in the realm of policy. You could surmise from Wallström's term, as she herself stated, that a "feminist foreign policy" would promote women's rights around the world, but what would it say, for example, about the logic of preventive war? Would it prioritize free trade and open borders, or emphasize protecting workers from competition? Would it generate a new way of dealing with unsecured nuclear material in the former Soviet Union?

The Latest: Turkish artillery strikes Syrian Kurdish militia Posted: 25 Aug 2016 01:05 PM PDT ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — The Latest developments in the Syrian civil war, following Turkish ground forces' incursion (all times local):

The Radical Anti-Conservatism of Stephen Bannon Posted: 25 Aug 2016 12:32 PM PDT Donald Trump's campaign manager wants to destroy the left. And the GOP nominee is just the most recent vessel of convenience in his consequences-be-damned crusade.

IS FIGHTING Posted: 25 Aug 2016 11:35 AM PDT Map locates the Islamic State group's area of support and control in Syria and Iraq; 2c x 4 inches; 96.3 mm x 101 mm;

Kerry in Saudi Arabia for talks on Yemen, Syria conflicts Posted: 25 Aug 2016 11:29 AM PDT RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met with Saudi King Salman in the Red Sea city of Jiddah on Thursday ahead of wider talks mostly focusing on Yemen's 18-month-long war and the conflict in Syria.

Iraq, Syria discuss securing border as Islamic State retreats Posted: 25 Aug 2016 11:20 AM PDT Iraq's Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi held talks on Thursday with visiting Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem about securing their common border, an official Iraqi statement said, after a partial retreat by Islamic State militants. This year the jihadist group has lost about half the land it seized in 2014 and 2015 in Iraq but it remains in control of territory on both sides of the northwestern border with Syria. Abadi is hoping to take back Mosul, the largest Iraqi city under Islamic State's control, effectively defeating the group in Iraq.

Proof of Life: ISIS Hostage Kayla Mueller's Heartbreaking Never-Before-Seen Video Message From Captivity Posted: 25 Aug 2016 11:00 AM PDT The .mp4 video clip was only 10 seconds. Long enough for her family to recognize the young American woman in a black headscarf and green hijab but not long enough to identify where she was or who held her hostage in Syria in 2013. At 10 seconds and 22 megabytes, her proof-of-life video was small enough for the hostage takers to send by email from Syria.

Iraqi defense minister sacked as Mosul battle looms Posted: 25 Aug 2016 10:26 AM PDT By Saif Hameed and Stephen Kalin BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's parliament impeached Defence Minister Khaled al-Obeidi on Thursday over corruption allegations, removing him from office as the army gears up for an assault on Islamic State's de facto capital, Mosul. Two lawmakers said parliament voted 142-102 to withdraw confidence from Obeidi after questioning him this month about weapons contracts. Obeidi, a Sunni Muslim ally of Shi'ite Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, had spearheaded the military campaign to retake territory that the ultra-hardline Sunni Islamic State group seized in 2014 and said he had cut down on graft including ghost soldiers -- members of the military who do not exist but whose salaries are collected.

Iraqi defense minister gets no-confidence vote Posted: 25 Aug 2016 10:19 AM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq's minister of defense received a no-confidence vote from parliament Thursday just as Iraqi forces retook a key northern town near the Islamic State-held city of Mosul.

Portugal wants Iraq to waive diplomat sons' immunity after beating Posted: 25 Aug 2016 10:09 AM PDT By Andrei Khalip LISBON (Reuters) - Portugal on Thursday asked Iraq to waive the diplomatic immunity of the twin sons of its ambassador after prosecutors sought their interrogation as formal suspects in the beating of a local youth who ended up in intensive care. The case, which risks escalating into a diplomatic row, caused an uproar in Portugal after the two 17-year-olds, who have acknowledged their part in the beating of 15-year-old Ruben Cavaco on Aug. 17, were swiftly released by police on the night of the incident. The foreign ministry said on Thursday that it had handed the request to the Iraqi embassy's charge d'affaires, and now awaited a response from the Iraqi authorities.

Erdogan to inaugurate Istanbul's third Bosphorus bridge Posted: 25 Aug 2016 09:51 AM PDT Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday inaugurates Istanbul's third bridge to span the Bosphorus between Europe and Asia, a key project in his drive to create a lasting historical legacy. The work -- one of the longest suspensions bridges in the world -- will allow Erdogan to show that his dream of creating a glitzy "new Turkey" with ultra-modern infrastructure is on track despite the July 15 failed coup and a string of militant attacks. The bridge is named after the 16th century Ottoman Sultan Selim the Grim (Yavuz Sultan Selim in Turkish) who conquered swathes of the Middle East in an extraordinary eight year rule and remains a figure of adulation for modern day Turks.

Iraq parliament impeaches defence minister Posted: 25 Aug 2016 09:47 AM PDT Iraqi lawmakers on Thursday voted to impeach Defence Minister Khaled al-Obeidi over corruption allegations, MPs said. Obeidi lost a no confidence vote by 142 to 102 in a secret ballot, while 18 abstained, two members of parliament told AFP. The vote removes one of Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's key Sunni allies from government and comes as Iraqi forces ramp up preparations for an offensive against Mosul, the Islamic State group's last major stronghold in the country.

Zawahri urges Iraq Sunnis to wage guerrilla war as IS loses more land Posted: 25 Aug 2016 09:04 AM PDT By Maher Chmaytelli BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri on Thursday called on Iraq's Sunnis to prepare for a "long guerrilla" war as Islamic State militants lost more land near their de facto capital Mosul. Islamic State (IS) has lost this year about a half of the territory it conquered in 2014 and 2015 in Iraq in battles against government and Kurdish forces backed by a U.S.-led coalition as well as Shi'ite militias supported by Iran. The ultra-hardline group is also retreating in neighboring Syria against an array of U.S.-backed Syrian and Kurdish forces and the government army backed by Iran and Russia.

Amid quake's devastation, Italians tap experience to swing into action Posted: 25 Aug 2016 08:57 AM PDT It was Italy, the day after a magnitude 6.0 earthquake devastated towns and villages in a mountainous region in the centre of the country. Italy has a reputation for dysfunction and inefficiency in many spheres of life, from almost endemic tax evasion to revolving door governments and a bloated and politicized justice system. Take our geography quiz.

Attack on American University in Afghanistan leaves 13 dead Posted: 25 Aug 2016 08:36 AM PDT KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A brazen, hours-long militant attack on the American University of Afghanistan ended early Thursday after at least 13 people were killed and dozens wounded in the assault on the sprawling campus on Kabul's outskirts, a government spokesman said.

Turkish opposition leader targeted by Kurdish militants - minister Posted: 25 Aug 2016 08:20 AM PDT By Ece Toksabay ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey's outlawed Kurdish PKK militant group attacked a convoy carrying the main opposition party leader, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, in the northeast of the country on Thursday but he escaped unharmed, the interior minister said. Interior Minister Efkan Ala told Turkey's NTV news channel that three soldiers were injured in the exchange of fire with what he said were Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) attackers. President Tayyip Erdogan has said he will root out and destroy the PKK, which seeks autonomy or independence.

Iran minister defends encounter with U.S. warship Posted: 25 Aug 2016 07:59 AM PDT Iran's defense minister said on Thursday four of his country's vessels accused of harassing a U.S. warship were only doing their job, and Tehran would confront any American ship that entered its waters. The vessels from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) conducted what a U.S. defense official described as a "high speed intercept" of the warship on Tuesday in the Strait of Hormuz. The official said two of the Iranian vessels came within 300 yards of the USS Nitze in an incident that was "unsafe and unprofessional," underlining the tensions that remain more than a year after Washington and other Western powers reached a landmark nuclear deal with Iran and lifted sanctions.

Asylum claims in Britain highest in more than a decade Posted: 25 Aug 2016 07:11 AM PDT By Lin Taylor LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - More than 36,000 asylum seeker claims were made in Britain in the 12 months to June, according to government figures published on Thursday, the highest number in over a decade. In the 12 months to June this year, 36,465 people applied for asylum in Britain, a 41 percent increase on the year ending June 2015, which saw nearly 26,000 claims. The number of unaccompanied children seeking asylum in Britain rose to 3,472, a 54 percent increase on the year ending June 2015, representing 10 percent of all asylum claims in the 12 months to June this year.

In Iran, unique system allows payments for kidney donors Posted: 25 Aug 2016 07:00 AM PDT TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — The whirling hum of a dialysis machine could have been the soundtrack to the rest of Zahra Hajikarimi's life but for an unusual program in Iran that allows people to buy a kidney from a living donor.

Iraq army captures Qayyara oil region from IS, Abadi says Posted: 25 Aug 2016 05:03 AM PDT The Iraqi army has dislodged Islamic State from the Qayyara oil producing region located south of their de facto capital Mosul, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said on Thursday. "The liberation of Qayyara is an important step toward achieving the larger goal of restoring Mosul province," according to tweets from Abadi's media office. Iraqi forces last month captured the Qayyara airbase which it plans to use as a hub to support forces advancing on Mosul, 60 km (38 miles) further north.

Asylum claims in Britain in first half of 2016 highest in more than a decade Posted: 25 Aug 2016 04:55 AM PDT By Lin Taylor LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - More than 36,000 asylum seeker claims were made in Britain in the first half of 2016, according to government figures published on Thursday, the highest number in over a decade. Between January and June this year, 36,465 people applied for asylum in Britain, a 41 percent increase on the same period in 2015, which had nearly 26,000 claims. The number of unaccompanied children seeking asylum in Britain rose to 3,472, a 54 percent increase since 2015, representing 10 percent of all asylum claims so far this year.

Syrian Kurdish YPG says it returned to base after Manbij's capture Posted: 25 Aug 2016 04:41 AM PDT The Syrian Kurdish YPG militia said on Thursday its forces taking part in an operation to capture the city of Manbij from Islamic State had returned to their bases after the mission was successfully completed. The U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State separately said the "main element" of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)alliance, which includes the YPG, had moved east across the Euphrates river, which they had crossed in order to capture Manbij. U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that Syrian Kurdish forces must return to the east of the Euphrates into territory they hold after seizing Manbij.

China military says it is providing medical training for Syria Posted: 25 Aug 2016 03:53 AM PDT China's Defence Ministry said on Thursday it has been providing medical training for Syria, following a visit to the war-ravaged country last week by a senior Chinese officer. While relying on the region for oil supplies, China tends to leave Middle Eastern diplomacy to the other permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, namely the United States, Britain, France and Russia. Guan Youfei, director of the Office for International Military Cooperation of China's Central Military Commission, met Syrian Defence Minister Fahad Jassim al-Freij in Damascus last week and discussed personnel training.

U.S. tells Turkey Syrian Kurdish YPG moving back to east of Euphrates: sources Posted: 25 Aug 2016 03:08 AM PDT U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Thursday that Syrian Kurdish YPG fighters were retreating to the east of the Euphrates river, Turkish Foreign Ministry sources said. In an early morning call, the two emphasized that the fight against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq would continue together, the sources said. Syrian rebels backed by Turkish special forces, tanks and warplanes entered one of Islamic State's last strongholds on the Turkish-Syrian border on Wednesday, in Turkey's first major U.S.-backed incursion into its southern neighbor.

Syria's Kurds: An embattled US ally in a complex civil war Posted: 25 Aug 2016 01:22 AM PDT BEIRUT (AP) — Syria's battle-hardened Kurds have proven their mettle against the Islamic State group, and in the process, carved out an autonomous zone across the country's north. But their advance has alarmed Turkey, and Ankara on Wednesday sent tanks across the border against IS, and demanded that the Kurds withdraw from recently seized territory.

Soldier who killed 5 Dallas officers showed PTSD symptoms Posted: 24 Aug 2016 10:13 PM PDT The Army reservist who killed five Dallas police officers last month showed symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder after returning home from Afghanistan in 2014, but doctors concluded that he presented no serious risk to himself or others, according to newly released documents from the Veterans Health Administration.

Planes hovering above Baltimore right now are recording every move people make Posted: 24 Aug 2016 08:00 PM PDT "Imagine Google Earth with TiVo capability." That's how the impressive, and very high-tech, one company's real-time surveillance system is sold to interested parties. In short, Big Brother is here, and as time goes on it'll get only better at seeing everything you do. DON'T MISS:  iPhone 7: New leak may have just solved the only mystery left Mounted on a Cessna plane that can hover above a city around the clock, an array of wide-angle cameras produce 192-megapixel images of an area that measures roughly 30 square miles, constantly beaming the images down to hard drives that store them indefinitely. Sitting at their desks, analysts can sift through the available images and move backward and forward thorough time to search for clues that might help law enforcement. The system may not be able to identify a person, which measures about a pixel, and can't magically read license plates numbers by simply magnifying a blurry image like you see in the movies. Instead, it's able to track objects and identify patterns. Analysts can tell police what a person did after he or she killed or robbed someone, for example. They can track a getaway car to see where it stopped, and they can go back in time to see how it arrived at the crime scene in the first place. Police can then combine that data with street cameras and footage from other locations that offer local surveillance, giving them a better chance of apprehending suspects. This isn't the plot of an Enemy of the State sequel. It's actually happening in the US right now, with a privately funded program underway in Baltimore, Maryland. At $2 million per year, the program is cheaper than police helicopters and it could help out with the city's aim of lowering crime rates. But in the wrong hands, the technology can be devastating, as it's essentially invading the privacy of every individual in the city. In Bloomberg Businessweek's massive expose , you'll learn exactly how this type of surveillance came to be. It all started in Iraq for Persistent Surveillance Systems' CEO Ross McNutt, where he provided a similar system that the Army could use to investigate bombings. Upon his return, he founded a private company that deals in professional surveillance. His object is to prevent crimes, and he says the system is designed in such a way that analysts looking at images would not be able to track targets for personal reasons, since everything is logged. However, as successful as the Baltimore project might be, it's still something local police would not acknowledge. And something regular citizens might not appreciate because of the obvious privacy implications. If this type of spying sounds similar, that's because law enforcement agencies have used similarly sophisticated surveillance systems mounted on planes in the recent past. Called StingRays, fake cell phone towers that can be installed on small plans can also help agencies spy on a community. And yes, before you ask, it appears that StingRays were also used in Baltimore as part of this new program. McNutt's firm isn't the only one selling surveillance to cities, and as camera and computer technologies evolve we'll only see more advanced systems ready to track everything we do from up above. Bloomberg 's story, complete with video, is available in full at this link . Definitely check it out.

Iran vessels make 'high speed intercept' of U.S. ship: U.S. official Posted: 24 Aug 2016 06:10 PM PDT By Idrees Ali WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Four of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) vessels "harassed" a U.S. warship on Tuesday near the Strait of Hormuz, a U.S. defense official said, amid Washington's concerns about Iran's posture in the Gulf and in the Syrian civil war. The official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said on Wednesday that two of the Iranian vessels came within 300 yards of the USS Nitze in an incident that was "unsafe and unprofessional." The vessels harassed the destroyer by "conducting a high speed intercept and closing within a short distance of Nitze, despite repeated warnings," the official said.

Kerry in Saudi talks on Yemen, Syria, Libya Posted: 24 Aug 2016 05:21 PM PDT US Secretary of State John Kerry was holding talks with his Gulf counterparts and a British minister in Saudi Arabia on Thursday on the conflicts in Yemen, Syria and Libya. The coordination with Washington's major Middle East allies came on the eve of Syria talks in Geneva between Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov. After a 30-minute meeting with Saudi King Salman, Kerry was to focus on the conflict in Yemen with UN envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, Britain's Middle East undersecretary Tobias Ellwood, and his Saudi and United Arab Emirates (UAE) counterparts.

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