Tag: Iraq
Conflict in Iraq drives oil prices higher
The sudden eruption of an al Qaeda-linked militant insurgency in northern Iraq last week triggered the biggest oil price spike in almost a year, as traders feared a civil war that might also draw in oil-rich neighbors.
Asian shares slip, crude firms as market eyes Iraq
(Reuters) – Asian shares got off on the back foot on Monday, as crude extended gains and tested nine-month highs on fears the insurgency in Iraq could spread – disrupting oil exports. Sunni insurgents seized a mainly ethnic Turkmen city in northwestern Iraq on Sunday, while the United States boosted security for its diplomatic staff in Baghdad and said some personnel had evacuated from the embassy. Brent LCOc1 rose about 0.5 percent to $113.07 per barrel, after touching $114.69 […]
Iraq insurgent advance slows, U.S. sends carrier to Gulf
(Reuters) – An offensive by insurgents that threatens to dismember Iraq seemed to slow on Saturday after days of lightning advances as government forces regained some territory in counter-attacks, easing pressure on the Shi’ite-led government in Baghdad. As Iraqi officials spoke of wresting back the initiative against Sunni militants, neighboring Shi’ite Iran held out the prospect of working with its longtime U.S. arch-enemy to help restore security in Iraq. U.S. President Barack Obama said on Friday he was reviewing military options, short […]
Bomb attacks in Baghdad and southern Iraq city kill 49
(Reuters) – Bombs exploded in predominantly Shi’ite Muslim districts of the Iraqi capital and in the southern city of Hilla on Tuesday, killing at least 49 people, police and hospital sources said. No group immediately claimed responsibility for any of the attacks, but Shi’ites are often targeted by Sunni Islamist insurgents who have been regaining ground in Iraq over the past year and overran several towns in recent weeks. The deadliest attacks on Tuesday occurred […]
Bombs kill at least 17 across Iraq: police and medics
HILLA, Iraq Wed Feb 12, 2014 2:52pm EST (Reuters) – At least 17 civilians and soldiers were killed in car and roadside bomb attacks across Iraq on Wednesday, police and medics said. No group claimed responsibility for any of the attacks, but Sunni Islamists and other insurgents have been regaining ground in a violent campaign to destabilize Iraq’s Shi’ite-led government. More than 1,000 people were killed in attacks across the country in January alone in […]
Roadside bomb explodes near Iraqi parliament speaker’s convoy
BAGHDAD Mon Feb 10, 2014 3:22pm EST (Reuters) – The speaker of Iraq’s parliament narrowly escaped death on Monday when a roadside bomb exploded near his convoy close to the northern city of Mosul, his office said. Usama al-Nujaifi, one of Iraq’s most senior Sunni Muslim politicians, was visiting al-Salam area south of Mosul when the bomb exploded, badly damaging a vehicle carrying his bodyguards, who were wounded, it said. No group immediately claimed responsibility […]
Iraqi forces kill 57 Islamist militants in Sunni province
BAGHDAD Mon Feb 3, 2014 2:49pm EST (Reuters) – Iraqi troops and allied tribesmen killed 57 Islamist militants in Anbar province on Monday, the Defense Ministry said, in advance of a possible assault on the Sunni Muslim rebel-held city of Falluja. There was no independent verification of the toll among the militants, said to be members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a jihadi group also fighting in the civil war […]
