UN concerned over treatment of Iraqi detainees Dec 2, 2008
BAGHDAD (AP) -- The United Nations says it's concerned about overcrowded prisons and the treatment of detainees in Iraq. Senior U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura says the issue will be a major challenge as the United States prepares to turn over control of thousands of inmates in its custody to Iraq's government. (WSVN-TV Miami, FL)
Reporters on the Job Dec 2, 2008
In what the US military calls the "Red Zone" and what everyone else calls Baghdad, you have to be wary of all-too-familiar dangers ... "Dozens of cars were in line ahead of us their doors open waiting for the bomb sniffing dogs. All batteries had to be removed from my four cell phones (not all of the phones work all of the time in Baghdad) and two tape recorders. Just as I realized was going to miss the appointment entirely, I ran into a contractor I hadn't seen in a couple of years," says... (Christian Science Monitor -- World)
Rocket attack near U.N. site in Baghdad kills 2 Dec 2, 2008
Victims worked for a catering company supporting the U.N. facilities in Baghdad. Another attack targeted Camp Victory, the U.S. military base near the Baghdad airport ... BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- At least two people were killed early Saturday in a rocket attack near a U.N. compound in Baghdad's Green Zone, an official with the United Nations mission in Iraq said. (CNN -- World)
In Algeria, Twin Bombs Kill at Least 52 Dec 2, 2008
"It's mimicking what people do in Baghdad.". The North African group represents the reorganized remnants of an Islamic insurgency, the , that had fought a losing guerrilla war against the Algerian military for nearly a decade. (Yahoo News -- Algeria)
'Chemical Ali' to learn fate in trial over Iraq Shiite uprising Dec 2, 2008
BAGHDAD, (AFP) - An Iraqi court is to decide on Tuesday the fate of Saddam Hussein's notorious hatchet-man "Chemical Ali" Hassan al-Majid and 14 others accused of committing war crimes during the 1991 Shiite uprising. The hearing, set for 11 am (0800 GMT), comes after harrowing testimony from witnesses of Saddam's crushing of the rebellion who described family members being thrown from helicopters and mass executions. (Yahoo! Asia News)
NPR team escapes injury in bombing of car in Iraq Dec 1, 2008
BAGHDAD - An American journalist for National Public Radio and three Iraqi colleagues escaped injury yesterday when a bomb attached to their car exploded as it was parked along a street in west Baghdad ... Use of so-called "sticky bombs" attached to cars, buses and trucks has become increasingly common in Baghdad. (Boston Globe)
U.N. unveils anti-fraud measures for Iraqi vote Dec 1, 2008
World Blog: Baghdad, Iraq ... BAGHDAD - U.N. and Iraqi officials on Sunday unveiled anti-fraud measures for Iraq's first nationwide vote in more than three years, including plans to assign teachers to staff voting stations because they are less likely to show political bias. (MSNBC -- International)
Iraqi doctors come to U.S. for training Dec 1, 2008
World Blog: Baghdad, Iraq. updated 1:02 p.m. ET Nov. 30, 2008. (MSNBC -- International)
Iraq-Iran war dead are exchanged Dec 1, 2008
It is also the first ever direct contact between Tehran and Baghdad to secure the release of their war dead. Previously they had done this via third parties or diplomatic channels. (BBC News)
S. Korea Among Countries Ending Iraq Deployment Dec 1, 2008
BAGHDAD South Korean troops are leaving Iraq, bringing to an end a mission that focused on rebuilding hospitals, roads and schools but which divided South Korea's people ... A ceremony to mark the end of the mission was scheduled Monday in Irbil, the capital of the Kurdish self-ruled region 220 miles north of Baghdad. (Fox News)
Iraq, with U.N. help, seeks to improve elections Dec 1, 2008
" Iraq concealed the identities of candidates in the previous election as a safety measure. Security has improved significantly since then, though elections can still be a dangerous for candidates and election workers. Iraq's election office displays photos of its employees who have been killed over the past five years.De Mistura and Faraj al Haydari, chairman of Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission said security would be a priority, though they didn't describe specific measures to... (Anchorage Daily News)
Former KBR Worker Admits to Fraud in Iraq Dec 1, 2008
Powell's fraud was discovered in January when KBR investigators searched Powell's residence in Baghdad and found large amounts of cash, including $8,000 worth of $100 bills stuffed in a jacket pocket, $1,580 on top of the refrigerator and about $3,500 worth of Iraqi dinars in the top shelf of a dresser, the court papers said. KBR then fired Powell, and he returned to the United States. (Yahoo News -- Halliburton)
Report questions over $1.4B of Halliburton bills Dec 1, 2008
9 million to run Baghdad's airport, Halliburton charged $12 ... In addition, Rory Mayberry, a former KBR food manager at Camp Anaconda in Iraq, testified on videotape from Baghdad that the company charged for twice the number of meals it provided and served food beyond its expiration date. (Yahoo News -- Halliburton)
More of this story Dec 1, 2008
Based in the International Zone of Baghdad, Troop A alone conducted well over 1,000 personal security detail missions during their eight months on the ground in Iraq. "My guys executed personal security detail missions for the U.S. Department of State, the United Nations, and the Baghdad Provincial Reconstruction Team," said Troop A's commander, Capt. Jeffery Westbrook, of Benton. (Hamburg Ashley County Ledger, AR)
* Troops search for militants in Baghdad Dec 1, 2008
Troops search for militants in Baghdad. AGENCIES, BAGHDAD AND NAJAF, IRAQ Monday, Dec 01, 2008, Page 7 ... Iraqi forces surrounded a neighborhood in Baghdad yesterday, searching cars and houses for militants behind a rocket attack that killed two UN contractors, officials said. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
* World News Quick Take Dec 1, 2008
A mass grave containing the bodies of 33 men, women and children has been found in a former Sunni insurgent stronghold north of Baghdad, officials said. Amer Riffat of the Diyala provincial council said the bodies were discovered on Saturday near Khalis. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
Bodies, some tortured, found in Iraq graves Dec 1, 2008
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Iraqi police recovered at least 38 bodies from a mass grave Saturday and Sunday, and expect to find more as they continue digging, police officials said. Men dig out bodies from a mass grave discovered near a former Sunni insurgent stronghold in Iraq. (CNN)
UN focuses on provincial elections in Iraq Dec 1, 2008
One of the missions of the UN office in Baghdad is to assist Iraq's Independent High Election Commission, or IHEC, with the organization of the elections ... Contributing reporting were Suadad Salhy in Baghdad and another employee in Najaf ... Thousands of Iraqis gathered in Baghdad on Friday to protest a security agreement with the United States. (International Herald Tribune)
Iraq: double bombing kills 16 in Baghdad Dec 1, 2008
A police officer says a car parked near a police academy exploded in a mainly Shiite area in northern Baghdad ... BAGHDAD (AP) - An Iraqi military spokesman says a senior Defense Ministry official has been wounded in a roadside bomb attack that killed one of his bodyguards ... Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi, says the blast occurred Monday in the Sulaikh neighborhood in northern Baghdad. (ABC 7 News, DC)
Bomb attacks leave 33 dead in Iraq Dec 1, 2008
At least 33 people were killed in a spate of attacks targeting security forces in the heart of Baghdad and the northern city of Mosul on Monday, the deadliest day in the country in three weeks ... In the Baghdad strike, a suicide bomber blew himself up near the entrance to the police academy on Palestine street in the city centre, shortly before a parked car exploded, the interior ministry said ... It said 15 people were killed and 45 wounded, while office of the Baghdad security plan said 11... (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
Jordan tightens Iraqi immigration Dec 1, 2008
The new G-Series passports are issued only in Baghdad, and are often only obtainable in return for a large bribe. Jordan has become safe haven for anything up to one million Iraqis, but in recent months the flow has been drying up as border regulations have been tightened, the BBC's Jon Leyne says. (Yahoo News -- Jordan)
Scores Dead In String Of Iraq Blasts Dec 1, 2008
Double-Bombing In Baghdad Targeted Police Recruits; Car Bomb In Mosul Kills 15. BAGHDAD, Dec. 1, 2008 ... (CBS/AP) A car bomb exploded near a police academy in Baghdad and then an apparently teenage suicide attacker blew himself up as police rushed to respond to the initial blast Monday, Iraqi officials said. (CBS News -- World)
Obama sets out to woo military chiefs Nov 30, 2008
Lorie Jewell / AP fileThen-presidential candidate Barack Obama and the then-top U.S. military commander in Iraq, David Petraeus, talk as they take a helicopter ride over Baghdad on July 21. Obama has apparently been working to reassure military leaders that he will take their opinions into consideration and not do anything rash. (Huntington WSAZ-TV, WV)
Rocket attack kills 2 in Green Zone Nov 30, 2008
Earlier, strike hits US compound in Baghdad ... BAGHDAD - A rocket slammed into a compound near the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad's fortified Green Zone yesterday, killing two people in an attack that seemed likely to reflect the anger of Shi'ite militias over a new US-Iraqi security pact ... Late Friday, a rocket hit Camp Victory, the main US military compound in Baghdad, the military announced. (Boston Globe)
'Not some sappy Christmas story' Nov 30, 2008
Tamara Dhia plays Amal, a 16-year-old who learns about giving and sacrifice in Raouf Zaki's ''Santa Claus in Baghdad ... He's scheduled three local screenings of "Santa Claus in Baghdad" in the next 10 days, plus a free online screening Dec. 9 for educators nationwide ... The writer, who now lives in Indiana, has become one of many supporters of the film, Zaki said, and he is hoping to get a grant to distribute a DVD of "Santa Claus in Baghdad" along with a copy of Marston's book, "Figs and Fate... (Boston Globe)
U.S. trains Iraqis to defeat roadside bombs Nov 30, 2008
An instructor talks about various explosive devices during a bomb disposal training for Iraqi security forces at a Besmaya range complex just outside Baghdad, Iraq, on Nov. 17, 2008 ... World Blog: Baghdad, Iraq ... The exercise at this sandy, wind-swept Iraqi military base south of Baghdad is part of U.S. efforts to pass on hard-learned lessons to Iraq's army on how to combat what has long been the insurgent weapon of choice roadside bombs. (MSNBC -- International)
UN contractors killed in Iraq Nov 30, 2008
Two foreign contractors working for the UN have been killed and 15 wounded in a rocket attack on Baghdad's high-security Green Zone, the UN says ... There have been many such attacks in the past, but they stopped after a ceasefire earlier this year between the Iraqi government and supporters of the anti-American Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr, says the BBC's Humphrey Hawksley in Baghdad ... The UN's presence in Iraq has been limited since a suicide bombing of its Baghdad headquarters in 2003 killed 22... (BBC News)
Iraqi Women, Children Among 33 Bodies in Mass Grave Nov 30, 2008
Nov. 29: Men dig out bodies from a mass grave discovered near a former Sunni insurgent stronghold of Khalis, north of Baghdad, Iraq. Nov. 29: Men dig out bodies from a mass grave discovered near a former Sunni insurgent stronghold of Khalis, north of Baghdad, Iraq ... BAGHDAD Iraqi officials say a mass grave containing the bodies of 33 men, women and children has been found in a former Sunni insurgent stronghold north of Baghdad. (Fox News)
Key clerics criticize new U.S.-Iraq security deal Nov 30, 2008
Latest Political Stories. Latest World Stories. (Anchorage Daily News)
Middle East report: Reporter recounts swing through U.S. war zones Nov 30, 2008
That may be in part because the Marines recently withdrew from Iraqi cities such as Haditha, another sign of the progress in the Anbar province west of Baghdad that once was a hotbed of the insurgency. In Anbar, military officials say the Iraqis are weary of war and longing for security and prosperity. (North County Times)
Iraq says critics can wait to judge U.S. over pact Nov 30, 2008
BAGHDAD (Reuters) Iraq's government tried to quell criticism on Sunday of a security pact which sets deadlines for U.S. military withdrawals, saying opponents could wait to judge how Washington honors commitments to pull back its troops ... Topics discussed included asking for the formal end of the U.N. mandate governing the U.S. presence in Iraq, which expires this year, and the handover of the fortified Green Zone military and government complex in Baghdad to Iraqi control. (Yahoo News -- Top Stories)
Iraqis find 33 bodies Nov 30, 2008
Iraqi authorities have uncovered several shallow graves north of Baghdad containing the bodies of 33 people believed to have been executed by Al-Qaeda earlier this year, officials said on Saturday. Police, health officials and local residents unearthed the bodies, many of which had been blindfolded and handcuffed, at the village of Abu Toama in the Diyala province north of Baghdad, one of the deadliest regions in the country ... But insurgents continue to carry out smaller attacks on a... (iAfrica.com)
Sydney Opera House architect dies Nov 30, 2008
Visionary architect of Sydney Opera House dies - Times Online. Treat a friend at PizzaExpress. (Times Online)
Isolated Iraq, Ghana stock markets soaring Nov 30, 2008
The official indicator for Baghdad's Iraqi stock exchange showed it soaring 40 per cent in September alone the same month Lehman Brothers went bankrupt and other markets nosedived ... Traders update share prices at the Iraq Stock Exchange in Baghdad. (Globe and Mail -- Business)
Bomb kills 12 near Shiite mosque in Iraq Nov 30, 2008
(11-29) 04:00 PST Baghdad. A suicide bomber detonated explosives outside a Shiite mosque south of Baghdad on Friday, police said, killing at least 12 people and injuring 23 a day after Iraqi lawmakers approved a security pact to extend the U.S. military presence in Iraq ... Meanwhile, a car bomb exploded in a square in central Baghdad, killing two people and wounding 15, police said. (San Francisco Chronicle)
U.N.: 2 dead, 15 hurt by rocket attack in Iraq Nov 30, 2008
BAGHDAD (AP) An Iranian-made rocket exploded Saturday near a U.N. compound in Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone, killing two foreign catering employees and wounding 15 others, according to U.N. and military officials. The attack comes as followers of anti-U.S. Muqtada al-Sadr hoisted black flags on houses, mosques and Sadrist offices in their Baghdad stronghold to protest a U.S.-Iraqi security pact that would let American forces stay in Iraq for three years ... It was the first such strike... (USA Today)
8 die in attack in Shiite mosque Nov 30, 2008
Nine killed, 15 hurt in suicide bombing in Shiite mosque south of Baghdad. Suicide car bombing kills at least two in Tayaran Square, Baghdad ... BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Suicide bombers on Friday launched two attacks in Iraq, killing nine people near Baghdad and two others in the capital. (CNN -- World)
In Algeria, Twin Bombs Kill at Least 52 Nov 30, 2008
"It's mimicking what people do in Baghdad.". The North African group represents the reorganized remnants of an Islamic insurgency, the , that had fought a losing guerrilla war against the Algerian military for nearly a decade. (Yahoo News -- Algeria)
For a soldier life stands still; the world does not Nov 30, 2008
He deploys in January to Baghdad and accepts his family and home will change. However, Neal feels he can't completely deal with these changes until he returns for good. (Columbia Daily Herald, TN)
Iraq's Top Cleric Has Concerns Over US Pact Nov 30, 2008
(BAGHDAD) Iraq's top Shiite cleric has expressed concern about the fearing it gives too much power to the Americans and does not protect Iraqi sovereignty, an official at his office said Saturday ... Al-Sistani also believed the pact did not offer sufficient guarantees to restore Iraq's full sovereignty or protect its assets, according to the official, who spoke from the cleric's office in the holy city of Najaf south of Baghdad on condition of anonymity because of the subject's sensitivity ...... (Time.com)
Iraq: Is it really coming right? Nov 29, 2008
In Baghdad in the middle of this week, after fierce debate and protests on the streets, Iraq s fractious parliament at last voted to approve a withdrawal agreement with the United States, under which all American troops will leave the country by the end of 2011 ... In Mosul, 320km (200 miles) north of Baghdad up the Tigris river, the governor of Nineveh province, Doraid Kashmoula, furrows his brow, fiddles with his worry-beads in one hand, stubs out yet another cigarette with the other and reels... (The Economist)
Iraq bombing kills 12 after security pact approved Nov 29, 2008
Firemen hosed down the site where a suicide bomber blew himself up near the entrance to a Shi'ite mosque in Musayyib, south of Baghdad, killing at least 12 people, Iraqi officials said ... BAGHDAD - A suicide bomber detonated explosives outside a Shi'ite mosque south of Baghdad yesterday, police said, killing at least 12 people and injuring 23 a day after Iraqi lawmakers approved a security pact to extend the US military presence in Iraq ... A car bomb exploded in a square in central Baghdad,... (Boston Globe)
Mortar attack near U.N. compound in Baghdad kills 3 foreigners, wounds 14 Nov 29, 2008
Rocket lands near Baghdad compound in Green Zone, official says ... World Blog: Baghdad, Iraq ... BAGHDAD - A rocket attack against a U.N. compound in Baghdad has killed three foreigners and wounded 14, an official said on Saturday. (MSNBC -- International)
Suicide bomber kills 12 south of Baghdad Nov 29, 2008
World Blog: Baghdad, Iraq ... BAGHDAD - A suicide bomber struck Shiite worshippers Friday at a mosque run by followers of anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, killing at least 12 people, a day after Iraqi lawmakers approved a security pact with the United States ... In Baghdad, thousands of al-Sadr's loyalists took to the streets to rally against the deal in the main Shiite district of Sadr City. (MSNBC -- International)
Suicide bombing at Iraqi mosque Nov 29, 2008
Reports say the bombing took place in the town of Musayib, 80km (50 miles) south of the capital, Baghdad ... Whilst Sadrists and their militia do control some areas of the country analysts believe their sway over the Shia community is reducing, BBC Baghdad correspondent Humphrey Hawksley reports. (BBC News)
Bomber Strikes Shiite Mosque, Killing 12 Nov 29, 2008
Nov. 28: The blast in Musayyib, south of Baghdad, occurred a day after Iraqi lawmakers approved a security pact with the United States. Nov. 28: The blast in Musayyib, south of Baghdad, occurred a day after Iraqi lawmakers approved a security pact with the United States ... BAGHDAD A homicide bomber blew himself up among worshippers waiting to be searched outside a mosque run by followers of anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr on Friday, killing at least 12 people, Iraqi officials said. (Fox News)
U.S. Pact May Weaken Iraqi Prime Minister's Dominance Nov 29, 2008
BAGHDAD Parliament's approval of a security pact with the U.S. has propelled Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki into a position of strength unsurpassed among Iraqi political leaders since the fall of Saddam Hussein. Furious dealmaking preceded the vote Thursday, compelling al-Maliki to make a wide range of concessions to Sunni lawmakers in exchange for their support. (Fox News)
THANKS: Iraq says $80 'reasonable' price for oil... Nov 29, 2008
Iraq says 80 dollars a 'reasonable' price for oil. Iraq says 80 dollars a 'reasonable' price for oil. (The Drudge Report)
Feelings are mixed as Iraqis ponder US security agreement Nov 29, 2008
At Friday prayers in Sadr City, the sprawling Shiite district in northeastern Baghdad, Sayyid Hassan al-Husseini thundered against the pact's supporters, delivering specific critiques of the agreement's provisions and criticizing the fact that it was made with the Bush administration rather than with President-elect Barack Obama, who has proposed a shorter timetable than the one outlined in the agreement ... Nazila Fathi contributed reporting from Tehran, Tariq Mahir, Anwar J. Ali and Mohammed... (International Herald Tribune)
Former KBR Worker Admits to Fraud in Iraq Nov 29, 2008
Powell's fraud was discovered in January when KBR investigators searched Powell's residence in Baghdad and found large amounts of cash, including $8,000 worth of $100 bills stuffed in a jacket pocket, $1,580 on top of the refrigerator and about $3,500 worth of Iraqi dinars in the top shelf of a dresser, the court papers said. KBR then fired Powell, and he returned to the United States. (Yahoo News -- Halliburton)
Report questions over $1.4B of Halliburton bills Nov 29, 2008
9 million to run Baghdad's airport, Halliburton charged $12 ... In addition, Rory Mayberry, a former KBR food manager at Camp Anaconda in Iraq, testified on videotape from Baghdad that the company charged for twice the number of meals it provided and served food beyond its expiration date. (Yahoo News -- Halliburton)
Iraq OKs U.S. pact Nov 29, 2008
BAGHDAD Iraq's parliament on Thursday approved a three-year timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops, a pact that supporters call a path to sovereignty and opponents say could be used to keep Americans on Iraqi soil indefinitely. The pact is the first step taken by Iraqi legislators toward ending the U.S. presence in their country since the American-led invasion in March 2003. (Albany Times Union)
* Iraqi parliament votes for US pullout Nov 29, 2008
The pact will be put to a national referendum before July 30 THE GUARDIAN, BAGHDAD Saturday, Nov 29, 2008, Page 7 ... The security pact between Baghdad and Washington was signed last week, but its implementation had remained uncertain until the decisive vote on the floor of the parliament on Thursday ... The influence of the Baathist regime that ruled Iraq under the executed former president has continued to dwindle since they were ousted from influential roles in the new government after the... (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
12 killed in bombing near Baghdad Nov 29, 2008
An Iraqi soldier standing guard near the site where a suicide bomber blew himself up in Musayyib, Baghdad on Friday ... A suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest blew himself up just inside the courtyard of a Shiite mosque in a town south of Baghdad on Friday, killing 12 people and wounding 19, according to eyewitnesses and officials ... The attack took place in Mussayib, a town about 80 kilometers, or 50 miles, south of Baghdad, as about 700 people were attending Friday prayers and preparing... (International Herald Tribune)
Correction: Iraq dog control headline Nov 29, 2008
WASHINGTON In the headline on a Nov. 26 story about controlling the dog population in Baghdad, The Associated Press erroneously described recommendations from Humane Society International. The animal rights group suggested how to control the dog population, not ways to kill dogs. (Yahoo News -- Politics)
Group urges humane treatment of stray dogs in Iraq Nov 29, 2008
WASHINGTON An animal rights group is urging Iraqi authorities to find better ways to eliminate stray dogs after 200 of them were killed in Baghdad this week by poisoned meat and rifles. Humane Society International wants to work with Baghdad officials because their methods to curb the stray dog population are "neither humane nor have been found to provide long-term solutions to the overpopulation program," the group said in a letter dated Wednesday ... "There are humane, effective and... (Yahoo News -- Politics)
MND-B Soldiers celebrate Thanksgiving with fellow comrades Nov 29, 2008
CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq The line stretched out the doors and curved along the sidewalks as Multi-National Division Baghdad Soldiers gathered at the 4th Infantry Divisions Ironhorse Oasis Dining Facility to celebrate Thanksgiving together Nov. 27 ... More than 72,000 Soldiers, fellow service members, contactors, subcontractors and Department of the Army Civilians throughout Baghdad feasted on 49,600 pounds of turkey, 6,300 pounds of fresh shrimp, 35,000 pounds of fresh mashed potatoes,... (KWTX.com, TX)
Post a comment » Nov 29, 2008
Light Fighter wrote on Jan 22, 2008 2:58 AM:" Wow... X-Seaman really knows how to throw a sucker punch. Well, let me tell you bud...I know what's going on in Iraq because I'm in the stinking country. I've been here for 3 of the last 5 years!!! Have you ever fought for your life in the streets of Baghdad? I know what the vast majority of the Navy boys are doing and if they are on ground then they are sitting on their butt on some FOB (Forward Operating Base). Don't get me wrong, I'm sure that... (Canton Daily Ledger, IL)
Shiite Militias Move Into Oil-Rich Kirkuk, Even as Kurds Dig In Nov 29, 2008
Gray said the militias used the bombing of the Askariya shrine in Samarra, north of Baghdad, as a pretext for expanding into Kirkuk, ostensibly to protect their mosques and people. Shiite residents of Kirkuk, most of whose families were transferred here by Hussein decades ago, are believed to make up less than 5 percent of the local population. (Yahoo News -- Kurdish Issues)
Bomber strikes mosque Nov 29, 2008
A suicide bomber shattered Friday prayers in a Shiite mosque south of Baghdad, killing nine people the day after Iraq's parliament approved a landmark pact allowing US troops to remain until 2011 ... Most of the wounded were taken to the general hospital in Musaib, 80 kilometres (50 miles) south of Baghdad, but three seriously wounded people were taken for treatment in the nearby town of Hilla ... Sadr had called on his supporters to "put up black flags, organise mourning ceremonies across the... (iAfrica.com)
Iraqi lawmakers give US security pact the nod Nov 29, 2008
BAGHDAD - For more than a year after he was first appointed Iraqi Foreign Minister in 2003, Hoshyar Zebari recalls, he was routinely stopped by junior American soldiers saying that he was not authorized to enter the Green Zone ... Iraqi soldiers, paramilitary, and police were out in full force on the streets of Baghdad, where there are still explosions almost every day. (Christian Science Monitor -- World)
Japan to pull military from Iraq by year's end Nov 29, 2008
The ASDF, Japan's aviation wing, has flown between Baghdad and southern Iraq ... The ASDF, Japan's aviation wing of its military, has conducted 810 flights, transporting 46,000 passengers and 670 tons of cargo in missions between Baghdad and southern Iraq, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. (CNN -- World)
Iraq: The Thrill Of Victory Nov 29, 2008
Defense Secretary Robert Gates, thankfully kept on by President-elect Obama, presided at Petraeus' retirement ceremony in Baghdad, and told the story of the best command decision a commander in chief has made since Lincoln sacked McClellan, put Grant in charge, and pointed Sherman in the direction of Atlanta. After Petraeus took charge, Gates noted, "Slowly, but inexorably, the tide began to turn, our enemies took a fearsome beating they will not soon forget. Fortified by our own people and... (Investors Business Daily)
War On Terror: The Spread Of Nihilism's Bloody Stain Nov 29, 2008
Mumbai (formerly Bombay) now joins London, Madrid, Bali, Casablanca, Baghdad, Fallujah, Washington, D.C., New York and a field in Pennsylvania as battlefields in the war on terror. The motives and the identity of the perpetrators are not clear, but they don't really matter. (Investors Business Daily)
Baby Boom Hits the Base Nov 29, 2008
"I'm terrified of the baby coming. I can run down the street of Baghdad no problem, but baby coming, I just don't know what to do," said specialist and father-to-be Nathan Smith. That's why many soldiers are enlisting in Daddy 101 classes. (ABC News)
