2017年2月15日星期三

Yahoo! News: Iraq

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Yahoo! News: Iraq


Trump offers national security adviser post to Vice Admiral Harward: sources

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 05:35 PM PST

Vice Adm. Robert S. Harward, commanding officer of Combined Joint Interagency Task Force 435, speaks to an Afghan official during his visit to Zaranj, Afghanistan, in this handout photoThe Trump administration has offered the job of White House national security adviser, vacated by former U.S. intelligence official Michael Flynn, to Vice Admiral Robert Harward, said two U.S. officials familiar with the matter on Wednesday. It was not immediately clear if Harward, a former deputy commander of U.S. Central Command who has Navy SEAL combat experience, had accepted the offer, according to sources.


Venezuela shuts off CNN in Spanish after criticizing story

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 05:34 PM PST

FILE - In this Feb. 6, 2017 file photo, Venezuela's Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez attends a news conference in Moscow, Russia. Venezuela suspended CNN in Spanish on Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017, shutting off the news channel a few hours after officials angrily criticized a report saying government workers engaged in selling fraudulent passports. Rodriguez said President Nicolas Maduro's government had requested that authorities take action against CNN in Spanish because of the "damage" it caused Venezuela. (AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin, File)CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela's government pulled CNN in Spanish from the nation's airwaves on Wednesday, shutting off the news channel after officials angrily criticized a report alleging the country's diplomats sold passports to members of a Middle East terror group.


Venezuela pulls Spanish-language CNN from air for 'distorting truth'

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 05:24 PM PST

By Girish Gupta and Andrew Cawthorne CARACAS (Reuters) - President Nicolas Maduro's government ordered the suspension of CNN's Spanish-language service from Venezuela's airwaves on Wednesday, accusing it of distorting the truth in coverage. U.S.-based 'CNN en Espanol' became unavailable on Venezuela's major cable providers minutes after a statement by telecommunications regulator Conatel announcing the suspension. The network had irked the socialist government with various reports, including one alleging passports and visas were being sold illegally at Venezuela's embassy in Iraq.

Trump calls for release of Venezuela opposition leader

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 04:46 PM PST

US President Donald Trump calls on Venezuela to free jailed opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez "immediately," posting a picture of himself and Vice President Mike Pence with Lopez's wifeUS President Donald Trump on Wednesday called on Venezuela to free jailed opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez "immediately," posting a picture of himself and Vice President Mike Pence with Lopez's wife at the White House. "Venezuela should allow Leopoldo Lopez, a political prisoner & husband of @liliantintor (just met w/ @marcorubio) out of prison immediately," Trump tweeted, along with the photo, which also features Florida Senator Marco Rubio.


Texas splits with other states to defend Trump's travel ban

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 03:56 PM PST

FILE - In this Feb.9, 2017 file photo, a man stands outside the main door outside the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals building in San Francisco. The state of Texas on Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017, defended President Donald Trump's ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim nations as an assertion of presidential authority intended to protect the country from terrorists, splitting with states that have denounced the order as a religious attack. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, file)SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The state of Texas on Wednesday defended President Donald Trump's ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim nations as an assertion of presidential authority intended to protect the country from terrorists, splitting with states that have denounced the order as a religious attack.


Venezuela pulls Spanish-language CNN from air for 'distorting truth'

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 03:52 PM PST

By Girish Gupta CARACAS (Reuters) - President Nicolas Maduro's government ordered the suspension of CNN's Spanish-language service from Venezuela's airwaves on Wednesday, accusing it of distorting the truth in coverage. U.S.-based 'CNN en Espanol' became unavailable on some cable providers minutes after a statement by telecommunications regulator Conatel announcing the suspension. The network had irked the socialist government with various reports, including one alleging that Venezuelan passports and visas were being sold illegally at the embassy in Iraq.

Venezuela bans Spanish-language CNN for Iraq report

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 02:57 PM PST

President Nicolas Maduro had earlier said he wanted the US-based CNN news channel "out" of the country, where state media dominateVenezuela pulled CNN's Spanish-language television channel off the air on Wednesday, accusing it of spreading "propaganda" about an alleged visa racket at the country's embassy in Iraq. The state National Telecommunications Commission ordered "the immediate suspension of broadcasts by the news channel CNN in Spanish" in Venezuela, a government statement said. President Nicolas Maduro had earlier said he wanted the US-based news channel "out" of the country, where state media dominate.


Pentagon boss to NATO nations: Increase military spending

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 11:43 AM PST

U.S. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, left, speaks with Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Isik during a meeting at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017. For U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, the next few days will be a reassurance tour with a twist. He is expected to tell allies the U.S. is committed to NATO and is also hoping to secure bigger defense spending commitments. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo, Pool)BRUSSELS (AP) — In an ultimatum to America's allies, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told fellow NATO members Wednesday to increase military spending by year's end or risk seeing the U.S. curtail its defense support — a stark threat given Europe's deep unease already over U.S.-Russian relations.


Trump defence chief to NATO: pay up or we reduce support

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 11:38 AM PST

US Defence Minister James Mattis addresses the press at the NATO headquarters in Brussels on February 15, 2017US Defence Secretary James Mattis bluntly warned NATO allies Wednesday that Donald Trump's administration would "moderate its commitment" to the transatlantic alliance unless members met their spending pledges. Mattis's no-nonsense message to his counterparts in Brussels follows years of calls by Washington for allies to spend at least two percent of their GDP on defence, a goal that only a handful meet despite agreeing on it at a summit in 2014. It packs extra weight as it comes after Trump has said US help for NATO members -- already worried by the threat from Russia in the east -- might depend on how much they have paid.


Trump offers national security adviser post to Vice Admiral Harward: sources

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 11:23 AM PST

Vice Adm. Robert S. Harward, commanding officer of Combined Joint Interagency Task Force 435, speaks to an Afghan official during his visit to Zaranj, Afghanistan, in this handout photoThe Trump administration has offered the job of White House national security adviser, vacated by former U.S. intelligence official Michael Flynn, to Vice Admiral Robert Harward, said two U.S. officials familiar with the matter on Wednesday. It was not immediately clear if Harward, a former deputy commander of U.S. Central Command who has Navy SEAL combat experience, had accepted the offer, according to sources.


Texas attorney general backs Trump in travel ban litigation

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 10:59 AM PST

File Photo: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks outside the U.S. Supreme Court in WashingtonPresident Donald Trump acted well within his authority in issuing his executive order on immigration, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton told a federal appeals court on Wednesday. Paxton, a Republican, attached a brief in asking the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in California for permission to argue in support of Trump's temporary ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries. Texas is the first state to back Trump in the closely watched litigation.


Mosul bombings temper residents' relief at Islamic State pushback

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 10:57 AM PST

A member of the security forces looks at a damaged car in front of the My Fair Lady restaurant in Mosul, IraqBy Stephen Kalin MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - The first blast, down the street from his uncle's restaurant in eastern Mosul, sent Mohammed Badr racing towards the door to check the situation. The second one, moments later at the entrance of the restaurant itself, knocked him off his feet. Together, last Friday's twin suicide bombings killed 14 people and fractured the sense of safety and relief that many residents felt after Iraqi forces pushed the jihadists out of their neighbourhoods in months of heavy street-to-street fighting.


Iran's Rouhani in Kuwait to soothe Gulf ties

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 10:51 AM PST

Oman's Sultan Qaboos bin Said (right) and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani meet following the latter arrival in Muscat on February 15, 2017Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday visited Kuwait as part of a lightning two-nation tour aimed at mending ties with Gulf neighbours strained by the conflicts in Syria and Yemen. Rouhani held talks with Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, who last month launched a dialogue with the Islamic republic to normalise Iran-Gulf relations. An official statement cited by the KUNA news agency said they discussed bolstering bilateral ties in all fields.


U.S. commander expects tough battle in western Mosul

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 10:33 AM PST

U.S. soldiers from the 2nd Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division gather around an artillery at a military base north of Mosul, IraqBy Ayat Basma NORTH OF MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - Islamic State will put up a tough fight in the western side Mosul that remains under its control despite the losses the group suffered so far in the battle for the Iraqi, a U.S. commander said on Wednesday. "It is hard and hard every day here," Colonel Patrick Work, commander of the 2nd Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division, said in an interview with Reuters TV at a brigade artillery position in northern Mosul. The United States is providing air and ground support to Iraqi and Kurdish forces trying to dislodge the hardline group from Mosul, captured in 2014.


Jordan commander: IS expands hold in border camp for Syrians

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 09:24 AM PST

In this picture taken Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2017, a Jordanian soldier stands at the north eastern border with Syria, close to the informal Rukban camp. The commander of Jordan's border guards says Islamic State extremists are expanding their influence in the sprawling border camp for tens of thousands of displaced Syrians, posing a growing threat to the U.S.-allied kingdom. (AP Photo/ Raad Adayleh)JORDAN-SYRIA BORDER (AP) — Armed Islamic State extremists are expanding their influence in a sprawling camp for displaced Syrians on Jordan's border, posing a growing threat to the U.S.-allied kingdom, a senior Jordanian military commander said.


Iran defeats U.S. Navy in defiant animated film

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 08:53 AM PST

Picture taken from Animation film "Battle of Persian Gulf II" depicts an armed confrontation between Iran's Revolutionary Guards and the U.S. NavyBy Bozorgmehr Sharafedin DUBAI (Reuters) - A full-length animated film depicting an armed confrontation between Iran's Revolutionary Guards and the U.S. Navy is soon to open in Iranian cinemas, amid rising tensions over President Donald Trump's hardening rhetoric against Tehran. The director of the "Battle of Persian Gulf II", Farhad Azima, said that it was a remarkable coincidence that the release of the film - four years in the making - coincided with a "warmongering" president sitting in the White House. "I hope that the film shows Trump how American soldiers will face a humiliating defeat if they attack Iran," Azima told Reuters in a telephone interview from the city of Mashhad in eastern Iran.


Syrian Kurdish groups expect U.S. support, will fight any Turkish advance

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 08:50 AM PST

A Kurdish security personnel stands guard at Khazer camp for displaced IraqisBy Ellen Francis BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian Kurdish militias and their allies expect continued U.S. support for their war against Islamic State in northern Syria and will fight Turkish forces if they advance towards Raqqa, a Kurdish leader said. Top Kurdish politician Ilham Ahmed spoke to Reuters from northeast Syria after returning from Washington where she pressed the new United States administration for political and military support.


UN temporarily pausing aid to eastern Mosul due to security

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 08:28 AM PST

A worker carried aid supplied at a camp for people displaced by fighting between security forces and Islamic State militants east of Mosul, Iraq, Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017. The United Nations says they are temporarily pausing aid operations to neighborhoods in eastern Mosul retaken from the Islamic State group for security reasons as IS insurgent and counter attacks continue to inflict heavy civilian casualties there.(AP Photo/Bram Janssen)HASSAN SHAM CAMP, Iraq (AP) — The United Nations said Wednesday it was temporarily pausing aid operations to neighborhoods in the eastern half of the Iraqi city of Mosul as attacks by the Islamic State group continue to inflict heavy civilian casualties there.


U.N. aid to Mosul paused on security concerns, to resume soon

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 08:02 AM PST

Displaced Iraqi people, who fled the Islamic State stronghold of Mosul, stand in line to receive aid at Khazer campSecurity concerns forced the United Nations to pause its aid operations this week in east Mosul, which Iraqi forces recaptured from Islamic State last month, but they will resume soon, a U.N. humanitarian official said on Wednesday. "Based on reports of insecurity, the U.N. decided that we would not send missions into eastern parts of Mosul until we reassess security conditions," said Lise Grande, the U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator for Iraq.


Suicide truck bomber kills at least 15 in Sadr City suburb of Baghdad: security sources

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 07:40 AM PST

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A suicide bomber detonated a pick-up truck on Wednesday in Sadr City, a heavily populated poor Shi'ite suburb of Baghdad, killing at least 15 and wounding 50, security sources said. The explosion, the deadliest in Baghdad so far this year, targeted a crowded street full of garages and used car dealers. Islamic has stepped up bombings in Iraq last year, in retaliation to a U.S.-backed campaign that dislodged the hardline Sunni group from most Iraqi cities it took over in 2014. The militants also control parts of neighboring Syria. ...

Dutch intelligence agency warns of child jihadists

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 07:39 AM PST

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Netherlands' main intelligence service says it's treating Dutch children in conflict zones in Iraq and Syria as "jihadist travelers" since they may have received military training.

World's diplomats seeking reassurance from US at G20 meeting

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 06:01 AM PST

A police officer stands outside the World Conference Center in Bonn, Germany, Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017. The foreign ministers of the G20 countries are meeting on Feb. 16 and 17 in Bonn. (Oliver Berg/dpa via AP)BONN, Germany (AP) — Foreign ministers from most of the world's leading powers are heading to a diplomatic summit of the Group of 20 industrialized and emerging economies in Germany, with all eyes on the new U.S. Secretary of State for clues about the direction Washington will take over the next four years.


France's Le Pen to visit Lebanon: government source

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 05:36 AM PST

Latest polls for April's French presidential vote show National Front leader Marine Le Pen leading with 27 percent in the first round, but she is not expected to triumph in a run offFrench presidential candidate Marine Le Pen will visit Lebanon next week for talks with leaders of Paris's former mandate territory, a Lebanese government source said Wednesday. "Madame Le Pen will be in Beirut on the 19th and 20th, and will meet (President Michel) Aoun and (Prime Minister Saad) Hariri on Monday," the source told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity. The latest polls for April's presidential vote show Le Pen, who heads the far-right National Front (FN) party, leading with 27 percent in the first round, but she is not expected to triumph in a run off.


Greek soccer hero helps refugees win battle against boredom

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 04:06 AM PST

In this Sunday, Feb. 5, 2017, coach of Hope Refugee Football Club Antreas Sampanis, right, gives directions to his players before a soccer match in western Athens. On weekends they play in an amateur league against teams made up of professional groups like lawyers, telecom workers, and accountants. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)SKARAMANGAS, Greece (AP) — Soccer fans of a certain age may still remember Antonis Nikopolidis for his resemblance to American actor George Clooney and as the goalkeeper who helped Greece become surprise European Champions in 2004.


U.N. warns of catastrophic dam failure in Syria battle

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 04:00 AM PST

A file photo shows a view of the Euphrates river during sunset in Raqqa provinceBy Tom Miles GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations is warning of catastrophic flooding in Syria from the Tabqa dam, which is at risk from high water levels, deliberate sabotage by Islamic State (IS) and further damage from air strikes by the U.S.-led coalition. The earth-filled dam holds back the Euphrates River 40 km (25 miles) upstream of the IS stronghold of Raqqa and has been controlled by IS since 2014. Water levels on the river have risen by about 10 meters since Jan. 24, due partly to heavy rainfall and snow and partly to IS opening three turbines of the dam, flooding riverside areas downstream, according to a U.N. report seen by Reuters on Wednesday.


UN 'extremely concerned' over conditions in west Mosul

Posted: 15 Feb 2017 01:58 AM PST

The Iraqi offensive to retake the Mosul was launched on October 17Living conditions in west Mosul, where jihadists are hunkering down among 750,000 Iraqi civilians, are deteriorating fast and a source of great concern, the UN's top aid official said Wednesday. "We are extremely concerned about the rapid deterioration of the conditions in west Mosul," United Nations humanitarian coordinator in Iraq Lise Grande told reporters. "Families are in big trouble, half of the shops have been closed," she said while visiting Hasansham, a displacement camp between Mosul and Arbil, the nearby capital of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region.


Mattis' reassurance tour in Europe could include US requests

Posted: 14 Feb 2017 09:30 PM PST

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg speaks during a media conference at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2017. NATO defense ministers will begin a two-day ministerial beginning on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)BRUSSELS (AP) — For Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, the next few days will be a reassurance tour with a twist.


West Mosul eating once a day and bracing for worse

Posted: 14 Feb 2017 04:43 PM PST

Iraqi special forces patrol the Al-Quds neighbourhood of Mosul after recapturing it from Islamic State (IS) group jihadists on January 3, 2017, during an ongoing operation to retake the cityAs the noose tightens around holdout jihadists in west Mosul, so does the belt around the waists of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians trapped there with dwindling supplies. "We're trying to build up some reserves but we have very little food left at home," said Umm Sameer, a mother from the Ras al-Jadda neighbourhood of west Mosul. After retaking eastern Mosul from the Islamic State group last month, Iraqi federal forces are now preparing to move on the part of the city that lies on the west bank of the Tigris River.


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