Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Exclusive: Syrian rebels get proposal to quit Aleppo, jihadists retake Palmyra
• Islamic State militants capture Palmyra despite heavy Russian strikes
• Cairo church bombing kills 25, raises fears among Christians
• Militants retake ancient city of Palmyra from Syrian forces
• India's 'better off' children march with world leaders to help those left out
• A look at Palmyra, the historic Syrian city retaken by IS
• US says 2,000 IS fighters killed, gravely wounded in Mosul
• Status of main battle fronts in Iraq and Syria
• Trump Says No to Daily Redundant Intel Briefings Because He's a 'Smart Person'
• Global leaders and laureates vow to take action to end child exploitation
• Car bombs in Iraq's Falluja kill eight people: police and medics
• Top contender to lead State known to back free trade, Russia
• US defence chief in Iraq to review Mosul op
• Saudi hits new oil output record in November amid OPEC cut talk
• Trump's pick for State is an accomplished executive
• Iraqi commander wounded in mortar attack south of Mosul
• Iraqi Christians confront painful memories in town's clean-up
• Conflict over Russia is rocky start for Trump and intelligence agencies
• U.S. Defense Secretary Carter in Iraq for talks on Mosul
• Iran proposes regional anti-terror bloc to include Saudis
• John Kerry given France's highest honour
• Twin blasts near Istanbul soccer stadium kill 29 , wound 166

Exclusive: Syrian rebels get proposal to quit Aleppo, jihadists retake Palmyra Posted: 11 Dec 2016 04:30 PM PST By Laila Bassam and Tom Perry ALEPPO, Syria/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian rebels have received a U.S.-backed proposal to leave Aleppo along with civilians under safe passage guaranteed by Russia, rebel officials said as government forces closed in on Sunday, but Moscow denied a deal had been reached. Three officials with insurgent groups in Aleppo told Reuters that a letter outlining the proposal had been received, offering an "honorable" departure for the rebels to a place of their choice.

Islamic State militants capture Palmyra despite heavy Russian strikes Posted: 11 Dec 2016 04:30 PM PST By Suleiman Al-Khalidi AMMAN (Reuters) - Islamic State captured the ancient city of Palmyra on Sunday despite dozens of Russian airstrikes to push back the militants a day after they briefly seized the city in eastern Syria, a war monitor and the militants said. In the government's first official admission that Palmyra had fallen once again to the militants, state media quoted the governor of the province of Homs, where the city is located, as saying the army had pulled out of the city. "The army is using all means to prevent the terrorists from staying in Palmyra," Homs Governor Talal Barazi was quoted as saying, hours after IS and a Britain-based monitoring group both said the militants had full control of the city.

Cairo church bombing kills 25, raises fears among Christians Posted: 11 Dec 2016 02:18 PM PST By Ahmed Mohammed Hassan and Ali Abdelaty CAIRO (Reuters) - A bombing at Cairo's largest Coptic cathedral killed at least 25 people and wounded 49, many of them women and children attending Sunday mass, in the deadliest attack on Egypt's Christian minority in years. The attack comes as President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi fights battles on several fronts. The militant group has also carried out deadly attacks in Cairo and has urged its supporters to launch attacks around the world in recent weeks as it goes on the defensive in its Iraqi and Syrian strongholds.

Militants retake ancient city of Palmyra from Syrian forces Posted: 11 Dec 2016 01:15 PM PST Islamic State militants recaptured the ancient city of Palmyra from Syrian troops Sunday, according to both sides in the battle, scoring a major advance after a year of setbacks in Syria and neighboring ...

India's 'better off' children march with world leaders to help those left out Posted: 11 Dec 2016 01:09 PM PST By Nita Bhalla NEW DELHI (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Thousands of children gathered at India's Presidential Palace on Sunday to launch a global campaign mobilizing better-off children to speak up for their disadvantaged counterparts. The campaign aims to build awareness, primarily through social media, of children's causes and encourage youth to petition governments and the international community to improve the plight of children. Led by President Pranab Mukherjee and prominent leaders such as Holland's Princess Laurentien and Nobel laureates from India, Yemen and Tunisia, more than 3,000 children marched at the palace to kick off the "100 Million for 100 Million" campaign.

A look at Palmyra, the historic Syrian city retaken by IS Posted: 11 Dec 2016 11:43 AM PST BEIRUT (AP) — A look at Palmyra, the archaeological gem that Islamic State fighters retook Sunday from Syrian troops in a major advance after a year of setbacks in Syria and neighboring Iraq.

US says 2,000 IS fighters killed, gravely wounded in Mosul Posted: 11 Dec 2016 10:05 AM PST Iraqi and U.S.-led coalition forces have killed or gravely wounded more than 2,000 Islamic State fighters in the battle for Mosul since October, the top U.S. commander in Iraq said Sunday. Lt. Gen. Stephen ...

Status of main battle fronts in Iraq and Syria Posted: 11 Dec 2016 09:27 AM PST Syrian forces pushed forward in Syria's second city of Aleppo as thousands fled rebel-held areas. Since mid-November, forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad have been focused on Aleppo, where they have retaken more than 85 percent of the one-time rebel bastion in the city's east.

Trump Says No to Daily Redundant Intel Briefings Because He's a 'Smart Person' Posted: 11 Dec 2016 09:07 AM PST President-elect Donald Trump, who is reportedly receiving a detailed intelligence briefing only once a week, instead of daily, said in an interview Sunday that he views the regular assessment of threats facing the United States as repetitive and unnecessary. The President's Daily Brief, or PDB, is created daily by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which synthesizes information from multiple elements of the Intelligence Community, including the Central Intelligence Agency, the Defense Intelligence Agency, the National Security Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and others.

Global leaders and laureates vow to take action to end child exploitation Posted: 11 Dec 2016 08:56 AM PST By Nita Bhalla NEW DELHI (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Over 200 global leaders and laureates on Sunday pledged to use their voices to protect millions of exploited children across the world and take concrete action to improve their schooling, support those living in conflict and to end child labor. "We will take actions ... towards concrete efforts to ending child labor in all its forms, including the trafficking of children, and abolishing modern day slavery." The delegates included the Dalai Lama, East Timor's former president and Nobel laureate Jose Ramos-Horta, former Australian premier Julia Gillard, Angel Gurria, Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development and Yemeni rights activist and Nobel peace laureate Tawakkol Karman.

Car bombs in Iraq's Falluja kill eight people: police and medics Posted: 11 Dec 2016 08:40 AM PST Eight people were killed in two car bombings in the Iraqi city of Falluja west of Baghdad on Sunday, police and hospital sources said, and a news agency close to Islamic State said its militants carried out the attacks. The bombings took place as Iraqi forces wage an eight-week military campaign to crush Islamic State in its north Iraq stronghold of Mosul, the largest city in its self-declared caliphate in Iraq and Syria. The fact that the jihadist group was able to carry out the attack in Falluja, which the Iraqi army recaptured in June, suggests it will continue to pose a threat in Iraq even if it is finally crushed in Mosul.

Top contender to lead State known to back free trade, Russia Posted: 11 Dec 2016 08:31 AM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — The top contender to lead U.S. foreign policy under Donald Trump is known for his longstanding support of free trade, international law and an expansive presence in the Middle East that doesn't fit with Trump's pitch to supporters.

US defence chief in Iraq to review Mosul op Posted: 11 Dec 2016 07:54 AM PST US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter held talks in Baghdad on Sunday to discuss the coming stages of the offensive to retake the city of Mosul from the Islamic State group. Carter flew to the Iraqi capital on an announced visit to "survey key locations directly supporting the battle for Mosul," the Pentagon said in a statement. The United States leads an international coalition providing assistance in the form of air strikes, equipment, training and advice on the ground to Iraqi forces battling the jihadists.

Saudi hits new oil output record in November amid OPEC cut talk Posted: 11 Dec 2016 05:05 AM PST Saudi Arabia pumped record-high amounts of oil in November, amid talks over a global deal to cut production, defying market expectations of lower output on slower domestic demand and refinery maintenance. The world's top oil exporter told the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries it pumped 10.72 million barrels per day last month, an OPEC source said, up from 10.625 million bpd in October. In July, the kingdom's production was 10.67 million bpd, the previous high.

Trump's pick for State is an accomplished executive Posted: 11 Dec 2016 04:30 AM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump has found an accomplished American executive in Rex Tillerson, but one whose longstanding support for free trade, international law and an expansive U.S. presence in the Middle East largely doesn't fit with what Trump has pitched to supporters.

Iraqi commander wounded in mortar attack south of Mosul Posted: 11 Dec 2016 04:26 AM PST An Iraqi military commander was wounded and one of his bodyguards killed when Islamic State militants fired mortar shells at his convoy south of Mosul on Sunday, officers from the local military command told Reuters. The fighting around Shirqat, in Salahuddin province, is part of a wider military campaign against Islamic State in the north of the country. U.S.-backed Iraqi force has been battling for eight weeks to crush the militants in Mosul, the largest city under Islamic State control in Iraq and Syria.

Iraqi Christians confront painful memories in town's clean-up Posted: 11 Dec 2016 03:45 AM PST By Patrick Markey QARAQOSH, Iraq (Reuters) - For decades, the Immaculate Conception Church in Qaraqosh was the heart of Iraq's largest Christian town. After two years under Islamic State rule, it lies scarred and desecrated. In the church's inner courtyard, Islamic State fighters set up a shooting range for target practice, leaving behind bullet-riddled female mannequins and hardboard figures when they were driven out.

Conflict over Russia is rocky start for Trump and intelligence agencies Posted: 11 Dec 2016 01:25 AM PST By John Walcott WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President-elect Donald Trump's rejection this weekend of U.S. intelligence analysts' conclusion that Russia intervened in the 2016 election to help him win the White House is the latest in a string of conflicts between Trump and the intelligence community he will command. Most of them involve Russia, which has grown increasingly aggressive - according to what U.S. intelligence agencies have told Congress and the administration of President Barack Obama - in Syria and Ukraine.

U.S. Defense Secretary Carter in Iraq for talks on Mosul Posted: 11 Dec 2016 12:19 AM PST U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter arrived in Baghdad on Sunday for talks with Iraqi leaders on the U.S.-backed military campaign against Islamic State militants in Mosul, the Pentagon said. Iraqi forces, backed by a U.S.-led coalition, have been battling Islamic State in Mosul for eight weeks. Carter said last week the battle for Mosul, while hard, could be complete before President-elect Donald Trump takes office next month.

Iran proposes regional anti-terror bloc to include Saudis Posted: 10 Dec 2016 11:50 PM PST TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran has proposed the formation of a bloc of Muslim countries to fight terrorism and boost economic cooperation that would include its regional rival Saudi Arabia.

John Kerry given France's highest honour Posted: 10 Dec 2016 09:33 PM PST US Secretary of State John Kerry has been given the Legion d'Honneur, France's highest honour, with his French counterpart calling him "the most French of American officials". At a ceremony in Paris on Saturday, French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault also said the top US diplomat was a "tireless champion of peace". "Francophone, Francophile, you are certainly the most French of American officials" Ayrault said.

Twin blasts near Istanbul soccer stadium kill 29 , wound 166 Posted: 10 Dec 2016 06:56 PM PST ISTANBUL (AP) — Twin attacks by a suicide bomber and a car bomber near an Istanbul soccer stadium Saturday night killed 29 people and wounded 166 others in the latest large-scale assault to traumatize a nation confronting an array of security threats.

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