Iraq war

Stories 861 - 880 | << Prev   Next >>

Top Republican Calls for New Iraq Plan

Lugar urges Bush to pursue economic and diplomatic strategy

(Newser) - An influential Republican senator abandoned his support for President Bush's Iraq war strategy last night with a call to cut back the US military's role in the region and focus more on diplomatic and economic options. Richard Lugar, the senior minority member of the Foreign Relations Committee, has a reputation...

Blair Tapped as Mideast Envoy
Blair Tapped as Mideast Envoy

Blair Tapped as Mideast Envoy

He'll prepare Palestinians for Israeli talks

(Newser) - Tony Blair will move into a key post as international Mideast peace envoy after  wrapping up 10 years as British prime minister tomorrow. President Bush personally mounted an "enormous push"  for the appointment, which will be based in Jerusalem and will involve working with the Palestinians to prepare...

Bush Seeks Deal with Congress on Iraq

President wants to avoid nasty floor fight on post-surge strategy

(Newser) - President Bush has quietly dispatched top officials to work with lawmakers who've defected on the war in Iraq, the Los Angeles Times reports. With support of the war plummeting, the goal is a revised war plan that could avoid bruising battles as  the mixed results of the troop surge come...

Number of Black Recruits Plummets
Number of
Black Recruits Plummets

Number of Black Recruits Plummets

Job market, family pressure contribute to 38% decline

(Newser) - The number of blacks signing up for the military has dropped 38% since the beginning of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, reports the AP. The number of new active-duty and reserve recruits fell from 51,500 in 2001 to less than 32,000 in 2006, reflecting both greater job opportunities...

Bush Preps for Exit Strategy on Surge

White House orders reports that could counter pro-surge Petraeus come Sept.

(Newser) - The Bush administration has commissioned a slew of reports that could help it justify an end to the troop surge later this fall, the New York Times reports. Three months before Gen. Petraeus's planned report on the efficacy of the troop increase—expected to recommend a continuation of the surge—...

Bombs Force Troops to Hoof It
Bombs Force Troops to Hoof It

Bombs Force Troops to Hoof It

Fearsome devices call vehicle defenses into question

(Newser) - Roadside bombs are now so powerful and plentiful in Baghdad that US soldiers are leaving their vehicles behind and patrolling on foot. Militant-planted explosively formed penetrators, or EFPs, can blow through the strongest Humvees and tanks, and the decision to "dismount" from the vehicles is coming from both commanders...

14 Troops Killed in 2 Days
14 Troops Killed in 2 Days

14 Troops Killed in 2 Days

5 soldiers dead after roadside bomb explosion; death toll hits 3,545

(Newser) - Fourteen American troops have been killed in Iraq over the past 2 days, bringing the US death toll to 3,545, with 68 fatalities in June. In the deadliest recent attack, five troops died today after a roadside bomb detonated under their vehicle in northeastern Iraq. Commanders attribute the worsening...

Rosie Wants to C'mon Down
Rosie Wants to C'mon Down

Rosie Wants to C'mon Down

Former 'View' co-chatter game to take Barker's 'Price is Right' spot

(Newser) - The Price is Right needs a new host and Rosie O'Donnell is interested. She's meeting with game show representatives this week and has given readers of her blog an insight into her stormy decision process, saying in one post she's be interested and in another that she might not be...

Photos That Changed the World?
Photos That Changed the World?

Photos That Changed the World?

(Newser) - Slate and Magnum Photos team up to present 31 photos that over the past 70 years have "informed the world" and "capture(d) the political and cultural zeitgeist of our time."  The iconic photos in this slide show range from a soldier falling in the Spanish Civil...

Dozens Dead in Baghdad Mosque Blast
Dozens Dead in Baghdad
Mosque Blast

Dozens Dead in Baghdad Mosque Blast

More than 200 hurt as violence against Shia holy sites continues

(Newser) - A car bomb exploded near a Shia mosque in Baghdad today just as afternoon prayers were ending, killing at least 75. More than 200 people were injured in the blast, which sent smoke billowing over the central city. The explosion came 2 days after officials lifted a curfew imposed following...

US Launches Major Attack on Sunni Insurgents

Americans take the fight outside of Baghdad to al Qaeda HQ

(Newser) - Two thousand U.S. and Iraqi troops launched a large-scale assault on Sunni insurgents in Diyala province last night, pursuing militants who have moved their strongholds outside of Baghdad. The offensive in the province's capital, Baquba, is part of a much larger operation attacking centers of insurgency all over Iraq....

Report: Blair Knew Bush Had No Postwar Plan

PM dispatched troops despite lack of Iraq reconstruction strategy

(Newser) - In the run-up to the invasion of Iraq, Tony Blair committed British troops to the effort despite knowing of serious deficiencies in US preparations for the aftermath, a TV documentary set to air this week reveals. He pushed ahead even after President Bush offered him an out, the Observer reports,...

Democrats Don't Live Up to Hype
Democrats Don't Live Up to Hype

Democrats Don't Live Up to Hype

New majority's accomplishments are few, and mostly symbolic

(Newser) - Seven months after wresting control of Congress from Republicans, Democrats have failed to make good on their promises, writes the Economist. Almost none of the bills introduced in the first "100 hours" has become law, AG Alberto Gonzalez still has a job, and an Iraq pullout is nowhere in...

Bush Hailed as Hero in Albania
Bush Hailed as Hero in Albania

Bush Hailed as Hero in Albania

Staunch allies offered warm welcome after string of protests

(Newser) - President Bush, dogged by protesters through his tour of Europe, received a hero's welcome in Albania, where he touched down for just seven hours yesterday. The Albanian premier, a staunch ally on the war in Iraq, called Bush the "greatest and most distinguished guest we have ever had in...

Military Preps for Iraq Pullout
Military Preps for Iraq Pullout

Military Preps for Iraq Pullout

Envisions 40K force to stay for years; big withdrawal by early 2009

(Newser) - Top military officials are quietly setting their post-pullout strategy, reports Thomas Ricks in today's Post, and they're readying to keep in place a long-term, mid-size force. The new plan requires upwards of 40,000 American troops to stay in the country, with half dedicated to security, a quarter to training,...

US Joins Sunni Militants to Smash Qaeda

Officer on alliance: 'We have made a deal with the devil'

(Newser) - American soldiers in Baghdad's violent Amiriyah district of have formed an unlikely alliance in an effort to root out al-Qaeda In Iraq. US troops are giving guns, and even the power of arrest, to a Sunni paramilitary group—and a week into the partnership, they’ve helped kill or capture...

Joint Chiefs Chairman Gets the Gate

Defense secretary cleans house, taps admiral for top job

(Newser) - In an effort to avoid confirmation hearings that would amount to a referendum on the war, the defense secretary will not recommend the Joint Chiefs chairman for a second 2-year term. Robert Gates said today he had conferred with senators from both parties and "concluded that the focus would...

Protesting Vet Faces General Discharge

Marine board acts after antiwar rally; corporal vows to appeal

(Newser) - In a decision that may hold implications for veterans' free-speech rights, a disciplinary panel has recommended that a decorated Marine who appeared at an antiwar protest in desert fatigues receive a general discharge. Adam Kokesh, who had been honorably discharged from active duty, says the military is using "tactics...

Militant Website Says It Has Video of Troop Abduction

Two GIs remain missing after ambush in Iraq

(Newser) - A militant Islamic website says it will release a video showing the capture last month of three American soldiers. The video shows the kidnapping as well as the ID cards of the two soldiers who are still missing, says an organization that monitors militant websites. The third soldier was later...

Democrats Focus Intently on Iraq
Democrats Focus Intently on Iraq

Democrats Focus Intently on Iraq

Debate centers on single issue as frontrunners stake out their territory

(Newser) - The Democratic presidential field already has three leaders, and they're so eager to distinguish themselves by staking out their Iraq stances that the other five candidates can barely get a word in. The Politico looks at last night's debate in New Hampshire and finds Barack Obama, John Edwards, and Hillary...

Stories 861 - 880 | << Prev   Next >>