iraq

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Arrests in Spain 'linked to Iraq'

Spanish police early Monday arrested 14 people suspected of recruiting and indoctrinating others to be sent to fight against Western forces in Iraq, according to a government anti-terrorist source. The 14 are of various nationalities.

'Iraq's Looking Good,' Cheney Tells U.S. Troops

Vice President Dick Cheney paid a surprise visit to Iraq on Sunday, declaring that the United States had "turned the corner" in efforts to pacify the country. His stopover came as insurgents renewed their attacks after a lull for last week's election and freed a kidnapped German archeologist.

Report: Bush Had More Prewar Intelligence Than Congress

A congressional report made public yesterday concluded that President Bush and his inner circle had access to more intelligence and reviewed more sensitive material than what was shared with Congress when it gave Bush the authority to wage war against Iraq.

Pentagon to Seek $100 Billion More for War Costs

The Pentagon is in the early stages of drafting a request for up to $100 billion more for military costs in Iraq and Afghanistan, lawmakers say, a figure that would push spending related to the wars toward half a trillion dollars.

Fatal Torture of Inmates Suspected

Two detainees may have been tortured to death by Iraqi security forces, the head of a commission investigating allegations of abuse at Iraqi jails said Tuesday.

U.S. Envoy Calls Torture at Two Iraqi Prisons Severe, Extensive

U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad on Tuesday described torture cases discovered in Iraqi police prisons as both extensive and severe, saying more than 120 abused detainees had been found in the two centers run by the Shiite-led government that have been inspected so far.

Bush acknowledges about 30,000 Iraqis have died

"How many Iraqi citizens have died in this war? I would say 30,000, more or less, have died as a result of the initial incursion and the ongoing violence against Iraqis," Mr Bush said in response to a question after a speech on Iraq.

From flowers to armoured vehicles: British forces in Basra

A thousand days ago, British forces were greeted in Basra with the proverbial flowers. Now the only time most inhabitants of Iraq's second largest-city see any sign of British troops on the streets is when they pass through every three days or so in a heavy armoured column.

U.S. officials push to include former Baathists in Iraqi election

In a reversal of policy, U.S. officials in Iraq are encouraging some former members of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party to run in Thursday's election, saying it's one way to bring marginalized Sunni Muslims into the new government.

Iran gaining influence, power in Iraq through militia

The Iranian-backed militia the Badr Organization has taken over many of the Iraqi Interior Ministry's intelligence activities and infiltrated its elite commando units, U.S. and Iraqi officials said.

Troops find more tortured prisoners in Iraq

American and Iraqi troops have found hundreds of prisoners packed so tightly into a Baghdad detention centre that they had trouble lying down, it was announced yesterday. Some had been tortured.

Iraqi Premier Decries Torture of Detainees

Prisoners had their bones broken and their fingernails pulled out, were subjected to electric shocks and had burning cigarettes crushed into their necks and backs, said the Iraqi official, who U.S. officials said had first-hand knowledge of the torture. The Iraqi official spoke on condition he not be named, fearing retribution.

President's Accounts of Gains Depict Only Part of the Picture

President Bush on Wednesday cited a teaching hospital in Najaf as perhaps the top example of a successful rebuilding project in Iraq. Since the American-led attack against local militias leveled large portions of Najaf in August 2004, however, the hospital has been most notable as a place where claims of success have fallen far short of reality. During two visits to the hospital by reporters for The New York Times over the past year, the most recent in late summer, work on refurbishing it had been limited to largely cosmetic work like new ceilings and lighting and fresh paint. Critical medical equipment was missing and the upper floors remained a chaotic mess.

In Cities Bush Cited, Progress Is Relative

In a tale of two cities, President Bush yesterday heralded progress in northern Mosul and southern Najaf as new models for rebuilding Iraq. But last Friday, Iraq's government imposed emergency law and a curfew in Sunni-dominated Mosul and throughout Ninevah province, and a senior U.S. official in Baghdad yesterday referred to the city of about 1.7 million as "nasty Mosul."

Pinter rails against US in Nobel prize speech

In a hoarse voice, he accused America of massacring innocent people all over the world in the name of democracy. He asked: "How many people do you have to kill before you qualify to be described as a mass murderer and a war criminal? One hundred thousand?"

COALITION OF THE QUITTTING: E. European support waning in Iraq

Some of the former East bloc's largest contingents in the US-led coalition are slated to bow out of fighting after Iraq's parliamentary elections in December.

Rumsfeld warns of Islamic superstate if U.S. leaves Iraq too soon

If U.S. forces leave too soon, Iraq will become a haven for terrorists and the base of a spreading Islamic superstate that would threaten the rest of the world, Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld said Monday.

Women bombers kill Iraqi police

At least 27 Iraqi police officers have been killed and another 32 wounded in a suicide attack on a police academy in east Baghdad, the US military has said.

Raised as Catholic in Belgium, She Died as a Muslim Bomber

Muriel Degauque, believed to be the first European Muslim woman to stage a suicide attack, started out life as a good Roman Catholic girl in this coal mining corner of Belgium known as the black country. She ended it in a grisly blast deep inside Iraq last month.

Rumsfeld Offers Optimistic View of Iraq

Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said Monday the American public should be optimistic about the situation in Iraq, and not judge progress based on the death toll alone. [...] "A lie moves around the world at the speed of light," he said, stressing there is a "jarring contrast between what the American people are reading and hearing about Iraq and the views of the Iraqi people."

Many Iraqi voters want Americans to go home

Campaigning for the December 15 parliamentary election has not focused much on the U.S.-led occupation, but one finding of a survey of dozens of voters by Reuters was the desire for foreign troops to leave the country.

US Army admits Iraqis outnumber foreign fighters as its main enemy

Iraqis, rather than foreign fighters, now form the vast majority of the insurgents who are waging a ferocious guerrilla war against United States forces in Sunni western Iraq, American commanders have revealed.

Former Iraqi prime minister says mob tried to kill him

The former Iraqi prime minister, Iyad Allawi, says a mob tried to assassinate him as he prayed at the main Shia shrine in Najaf. Mr Allawi had gone to the golden-domed shrine of Imam Ali as part of his campaign for the 15 December election. "As I was praying, a group of 60 or 70 people, wearing black uniforms and carrying swords and pistols moved towards us as they chanted slogans against us," he said yesterday. "It became clear it was an assassination attempt."

Sunni Candidates in Iraq Find Enemies on All Sides

Sunni politicians taking part in the elections denounce the Shiite-led government, yet Sunni militants brand them as traitors.

Saddam yells at judge in unruly session

Saddam Hussein's defense team walked out of court Monday, the former leader yelled at the judge, and Saddam's half brother shouted "Why don't you just execute us!" in an often unruly court session that also saw former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark speak on behalf of the deposed president.

Decline in Support for War Worries GOP

In Georgia, Even Republican Voters Are Voicing Unhappiness With Iraq Involvement

In Baghdad, Reality Counters Rhetoric

Through the smoke of car bombs on the streets of Baghdad, Ali Kathem has trouble seeing the progress that President Bush described Wednesday in a speech in Annapolis. "At least we didn't have terrorism under Saddam Hussein. Now, we have explosions, kidnapping, stealing," said Kathem, 24, a stocky man who has sold cigarettes on a busy roadside in the Iraqi capital for nearly a decade.

Female Belgian Bomber in Iraq Marks Grim First

An Islamic extremist from Belgium has achieved a grim milestone by becoming the first female European convert to commit a suicide bombing in Iraq, police said Wednesday after arresting 15 suspects linked to the woman in Belgium and France.

WEDNESDAY FUNNIES #1: U.S. Military Covertly Pays to Run Stories in Iraqi Press

As part of an information offensive in Iraq, the U.S. military is secretly paying Iraqi newspapers to publish stories written by American troops in an effort to burnish the image of the U.S. mission in Iraq. [...] Many of the articles are presented in the Iraqi press as unbiased news accounts written and reported by independent journalists. The stories trumpet the work of U.S. and Iraqi troops, denounce insurgents and tout U.S.-led efforts to rebuild the country.

WEDNESDAY FUNNIES #2: Rumsfeld Hasn't Hit a Dead End in Forging Terms for Foe in Iraq

The Pentagon's long struggle over how to describe the war in Iraq moved to new ground Tuesday as Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said he wanted to retire the term "insurgents" in favor of "enemies of the legitimate Iraqi government." Rumsfeld, who has previously described the foe as "deadenders," "former regime elements" and in other terms, told a Pentagon news conference that the insurgent label lent the enemy "more legitimacy than they seem to merit." Iraqis now have a constitutional government that offers them legitimate means of political expression, and the foe lacks broad popular support, Rumsfeld argued.