Iraq

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Blackwater's Legal, PR Counterstrike

Security firm goes on offensive to influence press, block suits

(Newser) - As Blackwater reels from the threat of criminal prosecution in Iraq, civil suits in the US, and bad press everywhere, the New York Times looks at the private security firm's counterstrike. Blackwater has hired a clutch of Washington lawyers and damage-control experts, including a former Clinton White House counsel, to...

Panel Rips Army Fraud 'Crisis'
Panel Rips Army Fraud 'Crisis'
Nov 1, 2007 4:51 AM CDT

Panel Rips Army Fraud 'Crisis'

Raps military on wasted contract billions

(Newser) - The Army is under fire for failing to train enough officers to supervise billions of dollars in contracts and allowing waste and fraud to flourish, reports the New York Times.  The problems have "created a crisis," according to an independent six-member panel appointed by Army Secretary Pete...

Diplomats Raise Stink Over Iraq Assignments

'Potential death sentence’ in required postings, staffers say

(Newser) - Foreign service officers vented anger today over the State Department's plan to require some to serve in Iraq, chewing out their director in a meeting. One senior officer called the “directed assignments”—which could force diplomats to take postings in Baghdad or outlying provinces—a “potential death...

US Troop Fatalities Down in Iraq
US Troop Fatalities Down in Iraq
Oct 31, 2007 4:15 PM CDT

US Troop Fatalities Down in Iraq

Falling trend signals 'window of opportunity'

(Newser) - US troop losses in Iraq dropped in the past month, matching the levels of March 2006 and giving a tentative credit to the current US strategy, the Christian Science Monitor reports. Thirty-six deaths have been reported in October, a lull ascribed to weapons-cache finds, the disruption of bombmaking cells, and...

US Military to Oversee Blackwater Convoys

Defense Dept. wins tug of war with State for control of contractors

(Newser) - The military is taking control of State Department security convoys in Iraq, supervising Blackwater and other contractors, the New York Times reports. State had fought a losing battle to keep control of Blackwater after it was involved in a September incident that left 17 Iraqis dead. Now, the military will...

Kentucky Dems Hope to Ride Blue Wave

Backlash may win them governor's office, Senate seat

(Newser) - Kentucky Dems are confident that they'll win the governor's office next week and grab a Senate seat in 2008, the Guardian reports. Polls put Steve Beshear up by 11 points in next week's gubernatorial contest, and Dems say Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is now beatable. "We are going...

Huge Iraqi Dam Could Fail
Huge Iraqi Dam Could Fail
Oct 30, 2007 5:51 PM CDT

Huge Iraqi Dam Could Fail

Biggest dam in Iraq could flood Mosul and kill up to 500K, US report says

(Newser) - Iraq’s biggest dam is vulnerable to breaking and flooding the city of Mosul, killing up to 500,000 and flooding the Tigris River, the BBC reports. A US report today warns that an ongoing $27 million reconstruction project has not fixed the dam's flaws. Poor construction, incorrect parts, and...

Iraqis to Put Contractors Under Local Law

Bill would require licensing, put convoys subject to search

(Newser) - Iraq's cabinet approved a draft bill today that would allow foreign security contractors such as Blackwater to be prosecuted under local law, Reuters reports. The bill would scrap Order 17—a hotly debated 2004 decree that protects contractors from prosecution—as well as require contractors to register for Iraqi licenses,...

Blackwater Guards Handed Immunity in Probe Blunder

Protection given without authorization

(Newser) - State Department investigators have jeopardized the Blackwater criminal probe by promising immunity to guards involved in the controversial shooting last month that killed 17 Iraqis, the AP discovered. The investigators, from the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, offered the guards limited-use immunity or "garrity" protection, which prohibits their statements from...

Bomb Wounds Highest Ranking Officer Injured in Iraq

Iraqi army finds eight of 10 kidnapped sheiks

(Newser) - A roadside bomb blew shrapnel today into the highest-ranking US commander yet injured in Iraq, CNN reports. U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Dorko, who had taken command October 10, was evacuated to Germany after the bomb detonated by his vehicle in Baghdad. His injuries were not life-threatening and he...

If Turks Cross Border, It's War: Kurdish Prez

Says Turkiey is trying to undermine Kurdish prosperity in Iraq

(Newser) - Kurdish President Massoud Barzani has warned the Turkish government that any move into his territory will be considered a declaration of war. The warning came yesterday as Turkish troops attacked separatist PKK guerrillas inside Turkey, killing 20, reports the London Times. Turkish officials have charged that the largely autonomous Kurdish...

Suicide Bomber on Bicycle Kills 28 Iraqi Policemen

Al Qaeda suspected in Baquba bombing

(Newser) - A suicide bomber rode a bicycle into an Iraqi police compound in Baquba today, killing 28 officers and wounding 20 others, including a woman and a child, in the bloodiest attack on security forces in months. Authorities suspect al Qaeda, which has vowed increased attacks on security forces and Sunni...

Petraeus Says al Qaeda Losing Baghdad Grip

But still dangerous enough to abduct 10 opposition sheiks today

(Newser) - Al Qaeda is losing ground in Baghdad, Gen. David Petraeus said today, even as the group showed its fangs by abducting 10 opposition tribal leaders. “Its presence has been significantly reduced,” Petraeus said, but cautioned that al Qaeda was still “dangerous and very lethal.” Gunmen, meanwhile,...

Shiites Foil US Plans for Sunni Cop Shops

Suspicion and 'highly sectarian' hiring thwart key US policy

(Newser) - Shiite officials are thwarting US attempts to train Sunni cops, crippling a key strategy aimed at slashing sectarian violence, the New York Times reports. Iraq has okayed Sunni neighborhood watch groups, but putting their old foes in uniform is another story. One US officer put it bluntly: Iraq officials "...

Kurdish Clashes Deep in Turkey Kill 15

Ankara holds out for diplomacy

(Newser) - Turkish soldiers killed 15 Kurdish guerrillas today in Tunceli province, several hundred miles from the area bordering Iraq where most of the clashes with Kurdish separatists have taken place, the AP reports. Iraqi-Turkish talks aimed at reconciling the escalating conflict collapsed before the weekend, and sources say that PM Recep...

Turkey Masses Troops, Ready to Invade

'We don't need permission' to strike Kurds, PM says

(Newser) - Turkey will invade Northern Iraq “the moment an operation is needed,” Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan vowed after talks with Baghdad crumbled last night. Ankara has up to 100,000 troops on the Iraqi border, backed by tanks and fighter plans, ready to strike roughly 3,000 Kurdish rebels....

Wounded Anchor Key Advocate for Injured Vets

Woodruff charity concert to net $1M

(Newser) - News anchor Bob Woodruff, severely wounded by a bomb in Iraq last year, is back to work as an ABC correspondent and has launched a new career as an advocate for wounded soldiers, particularly those with head injuries. A charity concert he helped organized, featuring Bruce Springsteen and Robin Williams,...

Brits to Study 'Invisible' Brain Injuries

Shock waves from IED blasts affect 20% of US troops in Iraq

(Newser) - The "invisible" brain injuries that are plaguing as many as 20% of US troops coming home from Iraq are now getting attention in Britain, where the Defence Ministry is launching a major study of returning British troops. The injuries, called "mild traumatic brain injury" (mTBI), are the result...

Diplomats to Be Ordered to Serve in Iraq

Lack of volunteers spurs biggest call-up since Vietnam War

(Newser) - Lacking volunteers for dozens of vacancies at the US Embassy in Baghdad, the State Department is set to order its diplomats to serve one-year postings in Iraq. Those selected for the postings will be notified Monday; if not enough take the bait, assignments will be made mandatory, on pain of ...

US Forces Hunt Down Iraqi Rackets
US Forces
Hunt Down
Iraqi Rackets
Oct 26, 2007 8:32 PM CDT

US Forces Hunt Down Iraqi Rackets

Illegal schemes funnel key money to insurgents

(Newser) - Iraq's mafia-style rackets are funneling big money to insurgents, making them key targets for US commanders. Corruption and kickbacks in real estate, soft drinks, cement—even the extortion of US contractors—are fueling what Maliki calls a “second war” in Iraq. "We have got to attack the insurgency...

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