Iraq

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Fireworks Set Off at Wedding Spark Blaze That Kills 113

Iraq tragedy leaves 150 people injured as well

(Newser) - More than 100 people are dead after a devastating blaze that reportedly broke out after fireworks were set off at a wedding in Iraq Tuesday night. Health officials in Nineveh, the province where the wedding took place, put the death toll at 113 or 114. Another 150 people were injured,...

Iraq Bans 'Gender,' 'Homosexuality' From Use in Media

'Sexual deviance' must be used in place of 'homosexuality'

(Newser) - Iraq says all media and social media companies operating within its borders are now barred from using the terms "homosexuality" and "gender." In place of "homosexuality," the term "sexual deviance" must be used instead, Reuters reports. The new edict was issued by the Iraqi...

Protesters Try to Storm Baghdad's Green Zone

Security forces stopped them from reaching Danish embassy

(Newser) - Hundreds of protesters attempted to storm Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone, which houses foreign embassies and the seat of Iraq's government, early Saturday following reports an ultranationalist group burned a copy of the Koran in front of Iraq's embassy in Copenhagen. Security forces pushed back protesters, who...

Iraqi Protesters Storm Swedish Embassy

Iraqi protesters denounced plans to burn Koran outside country's Stockholm embassy

(Newser) - The Swedish embassy in Baghdad was stormed Thursday by hundreds of protesters angered by plans to burn a Koran outside the Iraqi embassy in Sweden. Protesters broke into the compound, which also houses the Finnish embassy, and set a small fire, the AP reports. Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said...

Senate Votes to Repeal Measure That Green-Lit Iraq War

It seeks to end 20 years of authorization for US presidents to use force in Iraq

(Newser) - The Senate voted Wednesday to repeal the resolution that gave a green light for the 2003 invasion of Iraq, an effort to end more than 20 years of authorization for US presidents to use force in that country and return those war powers to Congress, reports the AP . The measure...

5K-Year-Old Tavern Still Holds Food
5K-Year-Old Tavern
Still Holds Food

5K-Year-Old Tavern Still Holds Food

Fish stew, anyone?

(Newser) - With the exception of beer, the tavern has everything a tavern should: an open-air dining area, benches, a kitchen complete with a refrigerator and oven, even food. The catch: all of it is more than 5,000 years old. Archaeologists have announced the discovery of the buried pub in the...

Baghdad's 'Starbucks' Points to Growing Problem in Iraq

Country is a hub for trademark violation, costing companies billions

(Newser) - Everything from the signboard outside down to the napkins bears the official emblem of the top international coffee chain. But in Baghdad, looks are deceiving: The "Starbucks" in the Iraqi capital is unlicensed. Real Starbucks merchandise is imported from neighboring countries to stock the three cafes in the city,...

As Iraq Melts Down, Borders Close, Flights Halt

The death toll has reached 20 amid unrest over resignation of influential cleric

(Newser) - Iran closed its land borders to Iraq as flights to the country halted Tuesday amid violence in Baghdad following an influential Shiite cleric's announcement he would resign from politics, the AP reports. The death toll rose to 20 Iraqis on Tuesday after the unrest erupted the previous day, according...

10 Killed After Protesters Storm Iraq's Government Palace

Clashes erupt after Muqtada al-Sadr announces retirement from politics

(Newser) - An influential Shiite cleric announced Monday that he would resign from Iraqi politics, prompting hundreds of his angry followers to storm the government palace and sparking clashes with security forces in which at least 10 protesters were killed. Protesters loyal to cleric Muqtada al-Sadr pulled down the cement barriers outside...

British Tourist Who Took Rocks, Shards From Iraq Site Gets 15 Years
Iraq Releases Tourist
Who Took Rocks Home
updated

Iraq Releases Tourist Who Took Rocks Home

Court overturned retired geologist's conviction

(Newser) - Update: Iraq has released a British citizen imprisoned for antiquities smuggling. Jim Fitton, a retired geologist, has left the country, his family said Sunday, per the AP . An appeals court overturned the conviction and ordered him freed. Sam Tasker, his son-in-law, said Fitton landed Friday in Malaysia, where he lives,...

Cleric's Followers Storm Iraqi Parliament
Protesters Storm
Iraqi Parliament

Protesters Storm Iraqi Parliament

Cleric's followers begin sit-in, canceling legislative session

(Newser) - Thousands of followers of an influential Shiite cleric breached Iraq's parliament on Saturday, for the second time this week, protesting government formation efforts led by his rivals, an alliance of Iran-backed groups. The alliance called for counterprotests, raising the specter of civil strife. Iraqi security forces initially used tear...

Dubya Makes 'Freudian Slip of the Century'

Former president slips up during speech, condemns invasion of Iraq instead of Ukraine

(Newser) - It's been awhile since we were treated to a Bushism , but the internet is once again delivering. The Hill reports that former President George W. Bush was speaking at an event in Dallas on Wednesday when he started slamming Russia's electoral system and how the country persecutes political...

This Is 5 M&Ms in a Stack. It's Also a New World Record
Stack of 7 M&Ms
Takes the Cake
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Stack of 7 M&Ms Takes the Cake

Master balancer Ibrahim Sadeq of Iraq is latest to claim the world record

(Newser) - Update: Will Cutbill had just eight and a half months to enjoy his Guinness World Record for the Tallest Stack of M&Ms at five. The Brit's achievement on Jan. 31, 2021 was the first of three times the world record would be broken in a 15-month span, per...

Iran Fires Missile Barrage Near US Facility in Iraq

It's seen as an escalation of tension between Washington and Tehran

(Newser) - Iran has claimed responsibility for a missile barrage that struck early Sunday near a sprawling US consulate complex in the northern Iraqi city of Irbil, saying it was retaliation for an Israeli strike in Syria that killed two members of its Revolutionary Guard. No injuries were reported in the attack,...

Iraq Is Done Paying Reparations to Kuwait

It paid out $52B over 3 decades

(Newser) - Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, and its forces were ousted by 1991. In the more than 30 years since, it has been paying reparations to Kuwait, a process that has finally officially finished. The UN commission set up to review the compensation demands and obtain and pay out the money...

Saga of Looted Gilgamesh Tablet Comes to an End

3,500-year-old tablet bearing portion of Epic of Gilgamesh now in Baghdad

(Newser) - A small clay tablet dating back 3,500 years and bearing a portion of the Epic of Gilgamesh that was looted from an Iraqi museum 30 years ago was formally returned to Iraq on Tuesday, following a September repatriation ceremony in Washington, DC. The AP reports the $1.7 million...

In Iraq, an Assassination Attempt Via Armed Drone

Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi is OK after assault on his home

(Newser) - Iraq's Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi survived an assassination attempt with an armed drone that targeted his residence early Sunday, and officials said he was unharmed. The attack in Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone marks a major escalation of tensions sparked by the refusal of Iran-backed militias to accept...

Gilgamesh Dream Tablet Is Finally Returned to Iraq

It was looted years before Hobby Lobby bought it in 2014

(Newser) - Update: A 3,500-year-old clay tablet looted from an Iraqi museum 30 years ago and bought by Hobby Lobby in 2014 is now officially Iraq's property again. The Gilgamesh Dream Tablet was formally returned at a repatriation ceremony at the Smithsonian Institution Thursday, CNN reports. Fareed Yasseen, Iraq's...

Biden, Iraqi Leader Announce Change of US Mission

Combat troops to be withdrawn, but nations will work together against ISIS

(Newser) - President Biden said Monday the US combat mission in Iraq will conclude by the end of the year, an announcement that reflects the reality on the ground more than a major shift in US policy. Even before Biden took office, the main focus had been assisting Iraqi forces , not fighting...

US to Pull Combat Troops From Iraq
US to Pull
Combat Troops
From Iraq

US to Pull Combat Troops From Iraq

By the end of the year, under the agreement, the American role will have shifted to advisory

(Newser) - The US and Iraq expect to announce next week that American combat troops will be out of Iraq by the end of the year. The countries are working on a plan that would keep Americans there in an advisory role, to help with the fight against ISIS. "We don'...

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