2017年2月10日星期五

Yahoo! News: Iraq

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Yahoo! News: Iraq


Judge sets October trial date for accused New York City bomber

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 05:09 PM PST

A U.S. judge on Friday set an October trial date for a man accused of detonating a bomb that injured 30 people in New York City, delaying the scheduled start about six months after defense lawyers argued they needed more time to prepare their case. Court-appointed lawyers for Ahmad Khan Rahimi, 29, an Afghan-born U.S. citizen, had complained that U.S. District Judge Richard Bermand and prosecutors were pushing for too prompt a start for a case that could result in life in prison. U.S. investigators have portrayed Rahimi as a jihadist who bought bomb components on eBay and kept a journal expressing outrage at the U.S. "slaughter" of mujahideen fighters in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Palestine.

Trump weighs revised travel ban, Supreme Court test still possible

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 04:33 PM PST

Iranian citizen and U.S green card holder Cyrus Khosravi greets his niece and brother after they were detained for additional screening following their arrival to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to visit Cyrus, in SeaTac, Washington, U.S.ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said late on Friday aboard Air Force One that he is considering issuing a new travel ban executive order, while White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus said the administration could still escalate a legal dispute over Trump's original travel ban to the Supreme Court. In a step that triggered the most serious legal confrontation yet for the new Republican administration, Trump two weeks ago issued an executive order banning entry into the United States to refugees and citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries, triggering nationwide protests and legal challenges.


French jihadist Kassim targeted in Mosul strike: Pentagon

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 04:00 PM PST

French-born jihadist and IS member Rachid Kassim, seen here in an Islamic State group propaganda video, is suspected of using the encrypted Telegram app to direct attacks on France from IS-controlled territory in Iraq or SyriaFrench jihadist Rachid Kassim, suspected of inspiring several attacks in France, was targeted in a coalition air strike near the Iraqi city of Mosul, but his death is not yet confirmed, the Pentagon said Friday. Earlier in the day, several French media reports had reported Kassim's death. "We can confirm that coalition forces targeted Rashid Kassim, a senior ISIS operative, near Mosul in a strike in the past 72 hours," said Pentagon spokesman Major Adrian J.T. Rankine-Galloway.


Trump says considering 'brand new' immigration order

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 03:48 PM PST

"We'll be doing something very rapidly having to do with additional security for our country. You'll be seeing that sometime next week," US President Donald Trump saidUS President Donald Trump said Friday he is considering drafting a new order to ban migrants from majority-Muslim nations after his initial decree fell afoul of the law. Insisting that he has the law on his side despite two defeats in federal court in quick succession, Trump said security concerns may necessitate a quicker response than legal channels would allow. The statement represents an embarrassing climbdown for Trump, who has insisted that the order was well drafted and who has nevertheless vowed to fight on in the courts.


White House seeks to regroup after stinging legal defeat

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 03:47 PM PST

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his wife Akie Abe step off of Air Force One as they arrive in West Palm Beach, Fla., Friday, Feb. 10, 2017. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)WASHINGTON (AP) — Seeking to regroup after a stinging legal defeat, President Donald Trump said Friday he is considering signing a "brand new order" after his refugee and immigration travel ban was halted in court.


After a win, travel ban opponents seek another court victory

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 03:09 PM PST

Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring, right, accompanied by Virginia Solicitor General Stuart Raphael, speaks outside the federal courthouse in Alexandria, Va., Friday, Feb. 10, 2017, following a hearing on President Donald Trump's travel ban. Lawyers for the state of Virginia are challenging President Donald Trump's executive order on immigration, arguing in federal court that his seven-nation travel ban violates the Constitution and is the result of "animus toward Muslims." (AP Photo/Jessica Gresko)WASHINGTON (AP) — Opponents of President Donald Trump's travel ban sought Friday to rack up another legal victory against the measure, believing they have the administration on the defensive after a federal appeals court refused to reinstate the order.


U.S. strike in Iraq targets Islamic State militant from France

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 02:42 PM PST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. military said on Friday it targeted senior Islamic State militant Rachid Kassim, who Reuters has previously reported to be a French national, in a strike by the U.S.-led coalition near the city of Mosul in the past 72 hours. "We are currently assessing the results of that strike and will provide more information when it becomes available," said Marine Corps Major Adrian J.T. Rankine-Galloway, a Pentagon spokesman, without offering additional details, including whether Kassim was believed to have been killed in the operation. ...

The next steps in the legal fight over Trump's travel ban

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 02:21 PM PST

President Donald Trump speaks in the East Room of the White House in Washington. Trump's freewheeling style on Twitter and elsewhere is complicating life for the government lawyers tasked with defending his executive actions in court. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has promised more legal action after a federal appeals court refused to reinstate his ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim nations. Trump tweeted "SEE YOU IN COURT" after the decision came out Thursday, but what he has in mind remains to be seen.


New York man accused of bomb plot admits Islamic State support

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 01:24 PM PST

A New York City man who prosecutors said discussed carrying out a pressure cooker bomb attack for Islamic State with one of its top hackers and helped another man try to travel abroad to join the militant group pleaded guilty on Friday. Munther Omar Saleh, 21, pleaded guilty in federal court in Brooklyn to four counts, including conspiring to provide material support to Islamic State and assaulting a federal officer by charging at a law enforcement vehicle.

Trump says he'll win travel ban battle, more measures coming

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 01:21 PM PST

"We'll be doing something very rapidly having to do with additional security for our country. You'll be seeing that sometime next week," US President Donald Trump saidUS President Donald Trump said Friday he is confident his administration will prevail in the legal battle over his controversial immigration order, while pledging to move quickly on additional security measures. The quoted passage found it "remarkable" that the appellate panel "did not even bother to cite" a key US statute that authorizes the president to suspend entry to the United States of all or any class of aliens he deems detrimental to US interests.


EU's Mogherini: U.S. says will fully implement Iran nuclear deal

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 12:53 PM PST

EU foreign policy chief Mogherini briefs the media during a EU foreign ministers meeting in BrusselsBy Lesley Wroughton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The European Union's foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, said on Friday she was reassured during meetings with President Donald Trump's administration that it was committed to full implementation of the Iran nuclear deal. In her first visit to Washington since Trump took power, Mogherini came to present the European Union as a valuable friend to the United States with common priorities.


Fed lawyers deciding next step in Trump travel ban fight

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 12:41 PM PST

Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring, right, accompanied by Virginia Solicitor General Stuart Raphael, speaks outside the federal courthouse in Alexandria, Va., Friday, Feb. 10, 2017, following a hearing on President Donald Trump's travel ban. Lawyers for the state of Virginia are challenging President Donald Trump's executive order on immigration, arguing in federal court that his seven-nation travel ban violates the Constitution and is the result of "animus toward Muslims." (AP Photo/Jessica Gresko)Government lawyers fighting to defend President Donald Trump's executive order on immigration said Friday that "all options" are being considered after a federal appeals court ruled against the president's ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim nations.


‘We promised to help them’: One congregation’s struggle to bring a Syrian family to America

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 12:25 PM PST

'We promised to help them': One congregation's struggle to bring a Syrian family to AmericaOn the night when the nearly 200 volunteers from the Holy Trinity Catholic Church should have been greeting their family of refugees at the airport, they were at a candlelight vigil instead, praying for the two parents and their six young children, whose flight to a new life had been canceled by a presidential executive order. "We made a promise to help them.


Full interview transcript: Syrian President Bashar Assad

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 11:48 AM PST

This is your first interview with American media since President Trump has taken office. Have you had any communications with President Trump directly or indirectly, or anybody in his administration? This is an opportunity for you to convey a message to President Trump, if you have one.

Radicalization and the Travel Ban

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 10:53 AM PST

In the wake of Donald Trump's executive order banning refugees from seven Muslim-majority countries, one of the loudest outcries against it was that it could serve as a de facto rallying cry for the Islamic State. In a recent article, Simon Cottee, curiously, rejected that notion, brushing it off as "conventional liberal wisdom." In doing so, he politicizes the issue of terrorism.

UK drops hundreds of misconduct claims over Iraq, Afghan wars

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 10:47 AM PST

British Defence Secretary Michael Fallon, seen in 2016, said that 90 percent of the 675 current misconduct allegations involving British troops in Afghanistan were being dismissedBritain is dismissing hundreds of allegations of misconduct by its soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq, the defence ministry said on Friday, following an investigation that uncovered spurious claims. The Iraq Historic Allegations Team (IHAT), which was set up in 2010 and is dealing with hundreds of cases, will be shut down in the summer and 20 of its cases will be handed over to the Royal Navy police.


Suicide bombings kill 10, wound 33 in Mosul, Baghdad

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 10:39 AM PST

At least 10 people were killed and 33 wounded on Friday, in a series of suicide bombings that hit Baghdad and parts of Mosul recently recaptured from Islamic State, medical and security sources said. A man blew himself up inside the Sayidati al-Jamila ("My Fair Lady") restaurant at lunchtime in eastern Mosul, killing at least four people and wounding 15. A suicide car-bomb killed a soldier and wounded four others in the eastern side of the city, which U.S.-backed Iraqi forces took from Islamic State last month.

Ex-U.S. Army reservist gets 11 years prison for Islamic State support

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 10:28 AM PST

Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, 27, of Sterling, Virginia, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Liam O'Grady in Alexandria, Virginia, the U.S. Department of Justice said. Prosecutors had sought a 20-year term for Jalloh, a U.S. citizen originally from Sierra Leone, while the defense sought a 6-1/2-year term.

Iraqi officials: Suicide bombings in eastern Mosul kill 5

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 10:03 AM PST

In this Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2017 photo, a child passes a broken window, damaged by fighting between Iraqi forces and Islamic State militants, while Mosul residents play soccer in the background. After months of fighting, Mosul residents can finally practice their favorite game again at the soccer field in the eastern part of the city—and this time without the changes imposed by Islamic State militants. (AP Photo/Bram Janssen)BAGHDAD (AP) — Two suicide bombings in the eastern half of the Iraqi city of Mosul, including one that hit a popular restaurant, killed at least five people on Friday and wounded over a dozen others, Iraqi military and medical officials said.


France watches skies for Russian wargames, domestic drone threat

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 09:52 AM PST

A Russian Blackjack bomber Tu-160 is intercepted and escorted by a French Mirage military fighter above French coast in this image taken and distributed by French Air ForceBy Marine Pennetier LYON-MONT VERDUN AIRBASE, France (Reuters) - From close-up encounters with Russian warplanes to the threat of attacks from lightweight drones, France's air force is on alert on two fronts as it confronts a return to Cold War shadow-boxing and heightened domestic security concerns. In the latest alert involving European airspace, the French air force said on Thursday two Mirage combat jets and one Rafale had escorted the two bombers down the French coast before handing over to Spanish military planes. Britain said it had also scrambled Typhoon jets to monitor two Russian Blackjack bombers which flew near British airspace.


Iranians trample on US flag, mark 1979 Islamic Revolution

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 09:38 AM PST

Iranians march on a portrait of U.S. President Donald Trump and the picture of U.S. flag in an annual rally commemorating the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution, which toppled the late pro-U.S. Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Feb. 10, 2017. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iranians on Friday marked the anniversary of the country's 1979 Islamic Revolution with nationwide celebrations and mass rallies that saw people step on large U.S. flags laid out on the streets while President Hassan Rouhani called the new American administration "a problem."


The Latest: German police dispute nationalists' crime claim

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 09:23 AM PST

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Latest on migrants and refugees entering Europe and member countries' response to the inflow (all times local):

UK shuts down contentious probe into Iraq War abuse claims

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 09:23 AM PST

British Defense Minister Michael Fallon talks to the media outside the presidential palace after a meeting with Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades in capital Nicosia, in the eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus, on Friday, Feb. 10, 2017. Britain's defense secretary says the role played the UK's two military bases on Cyprus are "more important than ever" because of the rise of extremist terror and mass migration flows coming from the region. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)LONDON (AP) — The British government announced Friday that it is shutting down a contentious seven-year-old inquiry into allegations of abuse by U.K. troops in Iraq.


Assad says US troops welcome in Syria to fight 'terrorism'

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 08:51 AM PST

Assad says US troops welcome in Syria to fight 'terrorism'Syrian President Bashar Assad said in an interview released on Friday that the United States is welcome to join the battle against "terrorists" in Syria — as long as it is in cooperation with ...


Looks Like Mexico Will Get a Much Bigger-than-Expected Bill for Trump’s Wall

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 07:48 AM PST

Looks Like Mexico Will Get a Much Bigger-than-Expected Bill for Trump's WallMexico now knows the size of the bill they'll be receiving from the Trump administration for the border wall the president has promised to build -- and it's a lot bigger than expected. A report completed by the Department of Homeland Security and leaked to the Reuters news agency on Thursday, pegs the cost of extending the existing barrier along the southern border at $21.6 billion, almost double the $12 billion figure that Trump floated during his presidential campaign.


‘Disgraceful decision!’ Trump rips appeals court over travel ban

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 07:17 AM PST

'Disgraceful decision!' Trump rips appeals court over travel banPresident Trump continued to chastise the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Friday morning for refusing to reinstate his executive order banning travel from seven Muslim-majority countries and suspending the U.S. refugee program. Trump cited an analysis by Benjamin Wittes, the editor in chief of the blog Lawfare, which focuses on national security law, to attack the three-judge panel for unanimously voting to reject his claim of authority.


Iraqi PM, in call with Trump, requests end to travel ban

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 07:03 AM PST

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi asked U.S. President Donald Trump to lift the ban on people from his country traveling to the United States, in the first phone call between the two leaders, the Iraqi government said on Friday. "Mr. Trump stressed the importance of coordination to find a solution to this issue as soon as possible and that he will direct the U.S. State Department in this regard," the government said in a statement, adding that it was the U.S. president who had initiated the call on Thursday. Trump has said he will keep pushing to reinstate an executive order temporarily banning people from Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.

Beyond Boris Johnson: Number of 'expatriates' dropping US citizenship soars

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 06:12 AM PST

After years of promises, British foreign minister and former mayor of London Boris Johnson has finally renounced his US citizenship. On Thursday, the US Treasury published its quarterly list of Americans who gave up their citizenship. While concerns about President Trump and the future of US democracy had many Americans – including celebrities like Barbra Streisand and Lena Dunham – saying they would leave the country if he won, Americans abroad are likely to have more pragmatic reasons: namely, taxes.

Dutch police: 9 migrants discovered in refrigerated truck

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 05:01 AM PST

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Dutch police say they discovered nine migrants hiding in a refrigerated truck near the country's border with Belgium, after one of the migrants called officers because the group was so cold.

UK says Cyprus military bases 'more important than ever'

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 04:54 AM PST

British Defense Minister Michael Fallon, right, and with his Cyprus' counterpart Christoforos Fokaides, left, leave after the meeting with Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades at the presidential palace in capital Nicosia, in the eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus, on Friday, Feb. 10, 2017. Britain's defense secretary says the role played the UK's two military bases on Cyprus are "more important than ever" because of the rise of extremist terror and mass migration flows coming from the region. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Britain's top defense official said Friday that the country's two military bases on the eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus are "more important than ever" in light of the turmoil gripping nearby Syria.


EXCLUSIVE: Defiant Assad tells Yahoo News torture report is 'fake news'

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 02:00 AM PST

EXCLUSIVE: Defiant Assad tells Yahoo News torture report is 'fake news'Confronted with new evidence of torture and mass hangings in one of his military prisons, Syrian President Bashar Assad said in an exclusive interview with Yahoo News that the allegations were the product of a "fake news era" and charged that a human rights group, Amnesty International, had fabricated evidence to discredit his embattled government. "You can forge anything these days," Assad said when asked about a new Amnesty International report estimating that between 5,000 and 13,000 prisoners were killed in a "calculated campaign of extrajudicial execution" at a military prison outside of Damascus between 2011 and December 2015.


CIA chief, Turkish PM discuss closer anti-terror cooperation

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 01:30 AM PST

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Officials say Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim has met CIA chief Mike Pompeo and they agreed on closer cooperation against terrorism and organized crime.

Venezuela falls behind on oil-for-loan deals with China, Russia

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 01:06 AM PST

FILE PHOTO: Oil workers weld a pipeline at PDVSA's Jose Antonio Anzoategui industrial complex in the state of AnzoateguiBy Marianna Parraga and Brian Ellsworth HOUSTON/CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's state-run oil company, PDVSA, has fallen months behind on shipments of crude and fuel under oil-for-loan deals with China and Russia, according to internal company documents reviewed by Reuters. The delayed shipments to such crucial political allies and trading partners - which together have extended Venezuela at least $55 billion in credit - provide new insight into PDVSA's operational failures and their crippling impact on the country's unraveling socialist economy. Because oil accounts for almost all of Venezuela's export revenue, PDVSA's crisis extends to a citizenry suffering through triple-digit inflation and food shortages reminiscent of the waning days of the Soviet Union.


Remove Iraq from travel ban list, PM tells Trump

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 12:58 AM PST

Members of the Iraqi armed forces watch Donald Trump giving a speech after he won the US presidential elections in NovemberIraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi asked US President Donald Trump in a phone call to remove his country from a contentious travel ban list, a statement said on Friday. Iraq is one of seven Muslim-majority countries whose citizens are barred from entering the United States for 90 days under an executive order the newly sworn in US president signed on January 27. The ban was suspended by a lower court a week later and a federal appeals court on Thursday refused to reinstate it but Trump vowed to continue the legal battle for his order to stand.


Today in History

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 09:01 PM PST

Today in History

Iraq's 'cycling girls' ride for freedom

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 08:53 PM PST

Marina Jaber (C), known as "the girl on the bike", campaigns for the freedom of women to ride bikes in IraqHer name is Marina Jaber but to many she is "the girl on the bike", a young Baghdad artist inspiring Iraqi women to exercise their rights one pedal at a time. In Iraq's conservative society, the young woman cuts an unusual figure when she rides her red bicycle in the streets of the capital, her long black hair swaying in the wind. What started off as an art project became a social media meme and then a civil society movement.


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