Qaraqosh, Irag | Cindy Wooden-CSN | Amid the rubble and bombed out remains of four churches destroyed by Islamic State militants, Pope Francis paid tribute to Iraqi Christians who endured persecution and even death. While visiting Mosul and Qaraqosh in northern Iraq March 7, he also urged the Christians …
Read More »Trump says U.S. troops in Iraq to be reduced to 2,000
Washington, US | XINHUA | U.S. President Donald Trump said Thursday that U.S. troops in Afghanistan and Iraq would soon be reduced to about 4,000 and 2,000 respectively. “A lot of progress has been made in Afghanistan, but we will be down to 4,000 soldiers in a very short period of …
Read More »As prices fall, what are the threats to oil giant Iraq?
Baghdad, Iraq | AFP | As crude prices plunge, Iraq’s oil sector is facing a triple threat that has slashed revenues, risks denting production and may spell trouble for future exports. So what are the challenges facing the only significant industry in Iraq, as global oil prices fall to around $25 …
Read More »Iraq weighs larger NATO role to replace US-led coalition
Baghdad, Iraq | AFP | Iraq is considering a larger role for NATO at the expense of the US-led coalition, Iraqi and Western officials told AFP, after an American drone strike on Baghdad that sparked outrage. The January 3 strike which killed Iranian General Qasem Soleimani and a top Iraqi commander …
Read More »Iraq ouster of foreign troops would show US ‘failure’: analysts
Baghdad, Iraq | AFP | When it invaded in 2003, the United States promised “Iraqi freedom,” democracy, and prosperity. But 17 years later, its troops may be ousted from a country beset by just the opposite. After a parliamentary vote earlier this month, Iraq’s government is preparing to order foreign forces …
Read More »Law Firm rallies Ugandans injured at US military bases to seek compensation
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Ugandans injured while working for companies that performed overseas operations for the United States are being mobilized to access workers’ compensation benefits. The compensation is provided for under the Defence Base Act of the United States of America, and designed to give medical treatment …
Read More »What would a US withdrawal from Iraq look like?
Baghdad, Iraq | AFP | Iraq’s caretaker premier Adel Abdel Mahdi contended Tuesday that he received signed copies of a letter the US had said was only an unsigned draft describing steps America’s military would take to leave Iraq. Here is AFP’s look at what shape a withdrawal could take. – …
Read More »‘Never threaten Iran,’ Iran president tells Trump
Tehran, Iran | AFP | Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Monday warned his American counterpart Donald Trump to “never threaten the Iranian nation”, after he issued a US strike list of 52 targets in the Islamic republic. “Those who refer to the number 52 should also remember the number 290. #IR655 …
Read More »Trump’s Iraq sanctions threat ‘not very helpful’: Germany
Berlin, Germany | AFP | US President Donald Trump’s threat to slap sanctions on Iraq should Baghdad expel US troops based there “is not very helpful”, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Monday. “I don’t think you can convince Iraq with threats, but with arguments,” Maas told Deutschlandfunk radio, warning that …
Read More »Iraq parliament demands US troop ouster after Soleimani killing
Baghdad, Iraq | AFP | Pressure against the US in Iraq ramped up Sunday, as rockets hit near the American embassy and parliament demanded the ouster of thousands of US troops over the killing of a top Iranian general. Ties have deteriorated after an American precision drone strike Friday on the …
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