Green Zone

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Easter Bombings in Iraq Kill at Least 57
 Easter Bombings in
 Iraq Kill at Least 57 
updated
Mar 23, 2008 6:49 PM CDT

Easter Bombings in Iraq Kill at Least 57

Al-Qaeda bomber kills 13 in Mosul, while rockets hit Green Zone

(Newser) - Despite a yearlong decline in violence in Iraq, a series of attacks on Easter Sunday killed at least 57, reports the AP. In the most severe, a suicide car bomber killed at least 13 Iraqi soldiers and wounded 42 people at a military base in Mosul, an al-Qaeda holdout. A...

Cheney Makes Surprise Visit to Baghdad

Promises 'unwavering commitment' of US as war begins 6th year

(Newser) - Leading Iraq war architect Dick Cheney made an unannounced visit to Baghdad today, beginning a nine-day Middle East tour by promising Iraq the "unwavering commitment of the United States in finishing the difficult work that lies ahead." John McCain, traveling as a member of the Senate Armed Services...

Ahmadinejad to Visit Iraq
Ahmadinejad
to Visit Iraq
Mar 1, 2008 7:48 PM CST

Ahmadinejad to Visit Iraq

First-ever trip by an Iranian prez upsets Sunnis, poses security risk to hosts

(Newser) - Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will fly to Baghdad Sunday to meet with Iraqi president Jalal Talabani, the first state visit ever by an Iranian president, the BBC reports. Sunni Iraqi leaders expressed outrage over the visit, which also comes a day after the US claimed further evidence of Iranian meddling in the...

Militias Shell Green Zone in Baghdad

Assault on US-protected compound could hurt al-Sadr's credibility

(Newser) - A volley of rockets or mortar rounds hit Iraq’s Green Zone today, causing no injuries except perhaps to the credibility of a Shiite militia cease-fire extended just one day ago. The AP reports that nearly 10 explosions were heard inside the zone, which houses the American embassy, Iraqi government...

Iraq Splinters as Surge Quells Violence

Government holds no sway over 'highly decentralized situation'

(Newser) - The US troop surge has stemmed the bloodshed of Iraq's civil war but has failed in its other key objective of rebuilding the fragmented country into a cohesive nation. Ten months into the surge, Iraq has further splintered into sectarian strongholds run by warlords and militias, while the government's bickering...

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...

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 ...

Washington Post Reporter Killed in Iraq

Shot taking photos in embattled neighborhood

(Newser) - A Washington Post correspondent in Iraq was killed yesterday reporting from one of the  most volatile neighborhoods in Baghdad. Iraqi Salih Saif Aldin, 32, was shot in the head while taking photographs of burned-out homes. US news organizations rely heavily on Iraqi correspondents willing to  brave the hazards outside the...

US Ignored Blackwater Warnings
US Ignored Blackwater Warnings
Oct 7, 2007 8:02 PM CDT

US Ignored Blackwater Warnings

Immunity for guards was 'a bomb that could go off at any time'

(Newser) - The White House ignored signals about Blackwater and other private mercs for years, rejecting the idea that they were "a bomb that could go off at any time," the Los Angeles Times reports. One official says that contract guards blatantly smashed property and scared Iraqis, then argued that...

Blackwater Guard Kept Blasting 'After Call to Stop'

First details emerge in probe of Iraq shooting

(Newser) - At least one Blackwater security guard continued firing at Iraqis, despite colleagues' call to stop during the incendiary incident earlier this month that killed at least eight civilians, witnesses have told investigators. Another guard for the private security firm is said to have pointed his gun at a fellow employee...

US Reinstates Blackwater in Iraq
US Reinstates Blackwater in Iraq
Sep 21, 2007 1:08 PM CDT

US Reinstates Blackwater in Iraq

Despite government opposition, State Department returns company to streets

(Newser) - American convoys began emerging from the Green Zone again today, protected by Blackwater USA  guards, just four days after an Iraqi ban on the private security firm halted all such travel. Iraqis remain outraged over the deaths of 11 civilians in a Blackwater shooting incident Sunday, but a Maliki aide...

US Bars Travel for Officials After Iraqi Shootings

Iraqi officials blast killings by private security operation

(Newser) - Tensions are so high in the aftermath of the shooting deaths of 11 Iraqis by a private American security operation that the US has barred civilian officials from road travel outside Baghdad's fortified Green Zone for their own safety. The Iraqis were killed when contractors with security outfit Blackwater opened...

Duped Workers Build Baghdad Embassy
Duped Workers Build Baghdad Embassy
Jun 7, 2007 10:56 AM CDT

Duped Workers Build Baghdad Embassy

Kuwaiti firm lures poor laborers to Iraq; enslaves them on massive US project

(Newser) - The Kuwaiti company building the $592 million US embassy in Baghdad is under scrutiny for allegedly tricking workers into coming to Iraq. The Justice Department says Kuwaiti First promised poor workers from Bangladesh and Pakistan it would send them to Dubai, but instead brought them to the Green Zone, seized...

Blair Makes Last Visit to Iraq
Blair Makes Last Visit to Iraq
May 19, 2007 9:13 AM CDT

Blair Makes Last Visit to Iraq

PM pays goodbye call amid mortar attack, radio assault from Jimmy Carter

(Newser) - Tony Blair dropped in on Iraq's prime minister today, to assure him the Britain would continue to support the struggling Iraqi government even after he leaves office next month. Blair used the surpise visit to reiterate his confidence that there are "real signs of change and progress" in Iraq,...

Contractor Fatalities Soar in Iraq
Contractor Fatalities Soar in Iraq
May 19, 2007 9:13 AM CDT

Contractor Fatalities Soar in Iraq

New numbers show soaring increases in civilian casualties, even as the troop presence rises

(Newser) - Private contractors have been killed  in Iraq in record numbers this year, the New York Times reports, as the deployment of U.S. forces in outside the Green Zone amps up the danger for both soldiers and civilians. Through March, there were at least 146 killed, compared to 224 troops...

Eight Dead In Bombing of Iraqi Parliament

Suspected suicide bomber was bodyguard of Sunni MP

(Newser) - Eight people, including three lawmakers, were killed and at least 30 wounded when a suicide bomber eluded the normally heavy security around the Green Zone and  denonated an explosion in the cafeteria of the Iraqi parliament. Officials believe the culprit was the bodyguard of a Sunni legislator not among the...

Explosion Rocks Iraqi Parliament
Explosion Rocks Iraqi Parliament
Apr 12, 2007 7:39 AM CDT

Explosion Rocks Iraqi Parliament

Blast in Green Zone, killiing two MPs, comes hours after bridge attack

(Newser) - An explosion hit a restaurant inside the Iraqi parliament in Baghdad today, killing two members of parliament, wounding dozens and creating chaos in the capitol. The blast occurred when many MPs were having lunch, on a day when parliament was in session. The parliament building is deep within Baghdad's heavily...

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