Hundreds of Yazidis appeal to the world to help them leave Iraq.
Tag: Iraq
Fearing Iraq’s downfall, power brokers chose safe bet Abadi
By Michael Georgy BAGHDAD Tue Aug 12, 2014 4:09pm EDT (Reuters) – Pressure on Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to step aside had become unbearable. Sunnis, Kurds, fellow Shi’ites, regional power broker Iran and the United States all wanted him out. Maliki calculated he may have one more chance to hold onto power after eight years in office, even though alarmed allies had run out of patience as Islamic State jihadis swept government forces aside […]
Exclusive: Iraq says Islamic State killed 500 Yazidis, buried some victims alive
(Reuters) – Islamic State militants have killed at least 500 members of Iraq’s Yazidi ethnic minority during their offensive in the north, Iraq’s human rights minister told Reuters on Sunday. Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said the Sunni militants had also buried alive some of their victims, including women and children. Some 300 women were kidnapped as slaves, he added. “We have striking evidence obtained from Yazidis fleeing Sinjar and some who escaped death, and also crime […]
Iraq accuses Islamic State of Yazidi atrocity, U.S. make new strikes
(Reuters) – Islamic State militants have killed hundreds of Iraq’s minority Yazidis, burying some alive and taking women as slaves, an Iraqi government minister said on Sunday, as U.S. warplanes again bombed the insurgents. Human rights minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani accused the Sunni Muslim insurgents – who have ordered the community they regard as “devil worshippers” to convert to Islam or die – of celebrating a “a vicious atrocity” with cheers and weapons waved in […]
Air strikes vs. Islamist militants in Iraq, authorized
United States president Barack Obama approved the use of targeted missile strikes against Islamist militants if they threaten Americans stationed in Iraq.
Asian shares skid as Obama confirms air strikes on Iraq
(Reuters) – Asian shares tumbled on Friday as investors sought out safe-haven assets on growing fears that conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East could sap global growth, extending losses after U.S. President Obama said he had authorized air strikes in Iraq. Obama said in an address that he authorized targeted strikes to protect the besieged Yazidi minority and U.S. personnel in Iraq, after the Iraqi government requested help. “We can act carefully and responsibly […]
Iraq parliament delayed for five weeks, general killed near Baghdad
By Isra’a al-Rubei’i and Ahmed Rasheed BAGHDAD Mon Jul 7, 2014 10:23pm EDT (Reuters) – Iraq’s new parliament put off its next session for five weeks on Monday, extending the country’s political paralysis amid a Sunni Islamist insurgency that claimed the life of an army general near Baghdad. Citing the politicians’ failure to reach “understanding and agreement” on nominations for the top three posts in government, the office of acting speaker Mehdi al-Hafidh said parliament […]
Iraq counter-attacks against ISIL with airborne commando assault on Tikrit
(Reuters) – Iraqi forces launched an airborne assault on rebel-held Tikrit on Thursday, landing three helicopters with commandos in a stadium for what appeared to be their boldest counter-attack yet against Sunni insurgents who have rampaged through the north. Eyewitnesses said battles were raging in the city, hometown of former dictator Saddam Hussein, which fell to Sunni Islamist fighters two weeks ago on the third day of a lightning offensive that has given them control […]
Militants take Iraqi gas field town, president calls parliament session
(Reuters) – Militants took a town an hour from Baghdad that is home to four natural gas fields on Thursday, another gain by Sunni insurgents who have swiftly taken large areas to the north and west of the Iraqi capital. Iraq’s presidency said a session of parliament would be held on July 1, the first step to forming a new government that the international community hopes will be inclusive enough to undermine the insurgency. The overnight offensive […]
Kirkuk blast kills 6
A total of six people died when a suicide bomber attacked an Iraqi city, injuring 23 others.
Iran strongly opposes U.S. intervention in Iraq
Iran’s supreme leader rejected possible intervention in Iraq by the United States and others, saying that Iraqis themselves can bring peace in their country.
Sunni militants seize three towns in Iraq’s Anbar: sources
(Reuters) – Sunni insurgents led by al Qaeda splinter group the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) captured three towns in Iraq’s western Anbar province on Sunday, witnesses and security sources said. “Army troops withdrew from Rawa, Ana and Rutba this morning and ISIL moved quickly to completely control these towns,” a military intelligence official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The office for the prime minister’s military command said it had no […]
