Iraq News Headlines - Yahoo! News

Iranians reflect on sanctions as nuclear talks loom

DUBAI (Reuters) - An Iranian crewman climbed down from the cabin of the ship and shuffled over to the fence that separated the public road from the quayside. "Sanctions?" he said, surprised by the question. "No. They aren't a problem for us." Flicking the ash from his cigarette, he pointed to the souk clinging to the side of the dock, a smattering of stores doing an active business selling household goods, clay pots and garden plants brought by boat from Iran to the United Arab Emirates. ...

OLRTXT EMRG SY MEAST NEWS VIO DIP PIL HRGT POL INSURG

U.N. observers see Syrian forces kill two: rebels

AMMAN (Reuters) - Syrian police killed two people on Tuesday when they opened fire on a crowd who came out to welcome United Nations observers in the eastern province of Deir al-Zor, a rebel official said. "As soon as the U.N. convoy entered al-Busaira, a jubilant crowd of hundreds came out to welcome them. It was not minutes before they came under fire," Abu Laila, a Free Syrian Army official, said by phone from the town. "The observers immediately left al-Busaira. ...

Obama's preference for talks with Iran faces test

President Barack Obama's preferred path to end the Iranian nuclear standoff faces a stern test this week when world powers sit down with Iran in another bid to press it to meet international demands to prove it is not trying to develop nuclear weapons. Failure will strengthen calls for military action.

US ambassador to Afghanistan 'plans to quit'

US Ambassador to Afghanistan Ryan Crocker, a veteran diplomat who previously served as the US envoy to Iraq, Pakistan and Syria, plans to step down soon, CBS news reported early Tuesday.

Iraq seeks drones to protect oil facilities

Iraq is seeking to acquire surveillance drones to help protect its oil pipelines and platforms, which are key to the country's economy, Iraqi and US officials said.

Iraq bombings kill six, including four children

Bombings in the centre of the ethnically-mixed city of Baquba, north of Baghdad, killed six people including four children on Tuesday, an army officer and a doctor said.

Dust storm shuts Baghdad airport ahead of nuclear talks

A dust storm shut Baghdad airport on Tuesday, an Iraqi Airways official said, a day ahead of key talks between world powers and Iran on the Islamic republic's controversial nuclear programme.

General?s Blog Entry Reignites Army Suicide Debate

Iran nuclear talks step in Iraq's re-emergence

Nuclear talks between the major powers and Iran that are to be held in Baghdad on Wednesday have major implications for global security but also mark the latest step in Iraq's emergence from isolation.

Iranian film noir casts spell in Cannes

An Iranian film noir about an academic who returns home after two decades in the West to a family and country he no longer recognises made a splash at the Cannes festival this week.

NATO endorses strategy to end Afghan war but risks remain

CHICAGO (Reuters) - NATO set an "irreversible" course out of Afghanistan on Monday but President Barack Obama admitted the Western alliance's plan to end the deeply unpopular war in 2014 was fraught with peril. A landmark NATO summit in Chicago endorsed an exit strategy that calls for handing control of Afghanistan to its own security forces by the middle of next year but left questions unanswered about how to prevent a slide into chaos and a Taliban resurgence after allied troops are gone. ...

After NATO summit, questions about protest mindset

For activists, the NATO summit in Chicago served as one big stage from which to air a broad range of grievances ? not just the war in Afghanistan or other actions of the 63-year-old military alliance.

Obama on Afghan: Leave on time, no 'perfect' end

President Barack Obama and leaders around the globe locked in place an Afghanistan exit path Monday that will still keep their troops fighting and dying there for two more years, acknowledging there never will be point at which they can say, "This is all done. This is perfect."

NATO sets "irreversible" but risky course to end Afghan war

CHICAGO (Reuters) - NATO set an "irreversible" course out of Afghanistan on Monday but President Barack Obama admitted the Western alliance's plan to end the deeply unpopular war in 2014 was fraught with peril. A landmark NATO summit in Chicago endorsed an exit strategy that calls for handing control of Afghanistan to its own security forces by the middle of next year but left questions unanswered about how to prevent a slide into chaos and a Taliban resurgence after allied troops are gone. ...

Obama: Americans can't wait for ?perfect' Afghanistan before withdrawal

Exclusive: U.S. envoy to Afghanistan to step down shortly

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Veteran U.S. diplomat Ryan Crocker is expected to step down soon from his post as President Barack Obama's envoy to Afghanistan, departing the U.S. mission in Kabul as the United States negotiates a host of challenges on its course out of the long, costly war. The Obama administration is considering Deputy Ambassador James Cunningham to replace Crocker when he leaves the post as early as this month, sources familiar with the matter said. It was not immediately clear why the widely respected diplomat was leaving. ...

Chicago Demonstrations Drew Thousands, but Police Presence Seemed Nearly as Large

For protesters, diffuse messages raise questions

For activists, the NATO summit in Chicago served as one big stage from which to air a broad range of grievances ? not just the war in Afghanistan or other actions of the 63-year-old military alliance.

Top U.S. Mideast diplomat expected to take U.N. post

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Jeffrey Feltman, the top U.S. diplomat for the Middle East, is expected to leave the Obama administration to take a senior post at the United Nations, sources familiar with the matter said on Monday. Feltman, who is assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs, is expected to replace Lynn Pascoe, another career U.S. diplomat, as U.N. under-secretary-general for political affairs, a key post at the world body. In that position, Feltman would help to formulate U.N. policy in negotiations on the Middle East peace process and other conflicts and to oversee U.N. ...

Why Obama Is Doubling Down on Bain Capital Attacks Against Romney

Avengers outgun 'Battleship,' stay atop US box office

Record-breaking blockbuster "The Avengers" stayed atop North America's box offices for a third straight week, easily outgunning new arrival "Battleship," industry data showed Monday.

The Reasons Obama Is Doubling Down on Bain Capital Attacks Against Romney

Questions from Troops for the President - Today's Qs for O - 5/21/2012

Lawyer says soldier doesn't remember Iraq killings

DA to seek death penalty in 6 California murders

Prosecutors will seek the death penalty against a former Marine accused of murdering four homeless men and a woman and her son in California, authorities said Monday.

AFGE Calls for Improved Management and Increased Resources to Address the VA's Disability Claims Backlog

Oil rises on China calls for growth, Iran

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Monday after China's premier called for more efforts to stimulate growth and as investors cautiously awaited results of Iran's second round of revived talks with major powers over Tehran's nuclear program. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's call for "giving more priority to maintaining growth" signaled Beijing's willingness to take action after several recent economic indicators suggested that the economy could continue to slow. ...

Death penalty sought for Iraq war vet in California killings

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - California prosecutors will seek the death penalty against an Iraq war veteran charged with six murders, including the serial "thrill" killings of four homeless men in Orange County, a top prosecutor said on Monday. Itzcoatl Ocampo, a 24-year-old former U.S. Marine, is scheduled to stand trial in September on six counts of first degree murder with special circumstances, including the brutal stabbing deaths of four transients beginning in late December. ...

Stock market breaks losing streak; Facebook falls

After three weeks of dumping stocks, investors finally found something to be hopeful about.

Iraq attacks kill five

Shootings and bombings killed five people including a tribal chief and wounded 16 others in Iraq on Monday, security officials said.

Violence in Syria spills over into Lebanon

Syria's war barreled over the border with an angry, raucous funeral Monday for an anti-Syrian cleric whose killing set off a night of deadly street battles in Beirut and raised fears that Lebanon is getting drawn into the chaos afflicting its neighbor.

UN nuclear chief in Iran on key mission

The head of the U.N nuclear watchdog, in Tehran on a key mission that could lead to the resumption of probes on whether Iran has secretly worked on a nuclear weapon, said Monday that he met with Iranian leaders amid a "good atmosphere."

Obama looks abroad, with eye on voters back home

President Barack Obama spent weekend summits trying to end one war in Afghanistan, prevent another in Iran and save the global economy, knowing that each crisis could impact on his reelection hopes.

Stocks gain on Wall Street; Facebook falls

After a weekend that brought both fresh concerns about Europe and hopeful signs about China, investors decided to focus on the latter.

The Bipartisan Policy Center to Host Expert Discussion of America's Veterans Transitioning Back to the Work Force

Could Romney Out-Fundraise President Obama?

American jihadi in Somalia writes an autobiography

Why Obama is Doubling Down on Bain Attacks Against Romney

NATO?s Papier-Mache Agenda for Afghanistan