Iraq

Washington, January 14: U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, appearing withU.S. service members, pauses during a speech at al-Faw Palace at Camp Victory in Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, Jan. 13, 2011. Vice President Joe Biden said Thursday that the U.S. should make sure Iraq’s stability and democracy are strong enough to make it “a country that was worthy of the sacrifices” the American military suffered during eight years of war before the final troops depart.

Gandhinagar, January 13: The Gujarat High Court Friday said it would have to work out a model for the special investigation team (SIT) probing the Ishrat Jahan killing to see that the “sanctity and spirit of its order is not paralysed due to differences of opinion amongst its members”.

The court’s order came after the members of court-appointed SIT brought out their differences of opinion in functioning of the SIT and carrying out the investigation.

Najaf, January 08: Anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said Saturday his followers in Iraq were still resisting the U.S. “enemy” with all means, including military. But he tempered his fiery words by saying the new Iraqi government should be given a chance to get American forces out of the country in a “suitable” way.

Baghdad, January 08: Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr burnished his anti-US credentials by urging supporters to resist all occupiers of Iraq and oppose the United States, but not necessarily with arms.

In his first public speech since his homecoming on Wednesday after years of self-imposed exile in Iran, the one-time firebrand urged his supporters to give Iraq’s new government led by Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki a chance.

Baghdad, December 21: Iraq’s parliament voted Tuesday for a “partial” government, ending a political stalemate that has dragged on since elections nine months ago.

Lawmakers approved 70 percent of the 42-member cabinet, leaving the unfilled posts in the care of acting ministers who will replaced at a later date. The new ministers were sworn in after the vote.

Parliamentarians also voted for a government programme, which aims at fighting terrorism and attracting more foreign investment.

New Delhi, November 30: As the logjam in Parliament continues, Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar today said the government and the opposition should continue efforts to break the deadlock till a solution is found.

“Till a solution is found, both sides should continue efforts…my effort was part of it,” Kumar told reporters after an all-party meeting convened by her to break the deadlock failed to find a solution.

While opposition is demanding a JPC probe into 2 G spectrum allocation, the government has termed it as “unacceptable.”

Baghdad, November 11: Eight months of Iraqi political deadlock appeared to be coming to an end Thursday after a complex agreement was reached between parties, paving the way for the formation of a new government.

The deal would see Nuri al-Maliki, a Shiite Muslim, keep his job as prime minister and convene a new cabinet after the three-day Eid al-Adha Muslim festivities, which end Nov 18. Also, a Sunni Muslim would be speaker of parliament and a Kurdish leader was expected to stay on as president.

Baghdad, November 02: More than 30 people have been killed in Iraq from a series of car bombings, suicide bombings and explosions from improvised devices that rocked various parts of Baghdad Tuesday evening, according to security sources and witnesses.

Witnesses said that more than 70 others were injured in the attacks that targeted cafes, restaurants and popular markets.

There were around 11 car bombings and attacks by suicide bombers, according to witnesses who spoke to DPA.

Baghdad, October 26: At least seven people were killed and four injured Tuesday in bomb blasts in Iraq, police sources said.

An Iraqi officer with the rank of captain and five soldiers were killed in a blast that targeted their patrol to the north of Baghdad in Diyala province, police sources told the Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

The attack took place as their patrol was passing through the main road in Khalis, a town near Diyala’s capital Baquba, some 75 km northeast of Baghdad.

In central Baquba, four civilians were injured in a blast on Kharasan street, sources added.

Rajhasthan, September 14: Rajasthan will get a new greenfield airport at Neemrana in Alwar district, state Industries Minister Rajendra Pareek said.

“The decision was taken on the occasion of the visit of the Union Minister of Commerce and Industries Anand Sharma to Jaipur recently,” Pareek said at the valedictory session of the seminar on “Opportunities in Technical Textiles”.

Neemrana is 120 km from national capital Delhi.

Baghdad, September 02: Four people were killed and one injured in Iraq Thursday by unknown gunmen and a roadside bomb, while an army base came under rocket attack overnight.

A local official in Fallujah, some 60 km west of the capital Baghdad, survived an assassination attempt, but two people with him – including his brother – were killed, witnesses said.

They said the official, Farouk al-Kartan, was not injured. The unknown gunmen quickly fled the scene.

Earlier, a senior finance official at the Iraqi Ministry of Higher Education had been killed by unknown gunmen in Baghdad.

Baghdad, July 29:Al-Qaida briefly planted its flag in Baghdad today as militants killed 23 members of Iraq’s security forces across the country in a combination of shootings and roadside bombs demonstrating the dangers the country still faces.

The worst attack came in Baghdad’s Sunni neighbourhood of Azamiyah when 16 Iraqi security forces were killed by what appeared to have been coordinated strikes by al-Qaida militants, who then planted their flag close to the blood-soaked site.

Baghdad, July 15: The US has handed over 55 former members of Saddam Hussein’s inner circle, including the longtime international face of the regime, Tariq Aziz, Iraq’s deputy justice minister said Wednesday.

The announcement comes a day before US authorities are to transfer authority of Camp Cropper, the last American-run detention facility to the Iraqi government.

Iraq’s deputy justice minister Busho Ibrahim told The Associated Press that the handover has taken place over the last three days, starting on Monday.

Amman (Jordan), July 14: Iraq’s jailed ex-deputy prime minister Tareq Aziz has been handed over by the US military to the Iraqi authorities, his lawyer said today, warning that his client’s life is “in danger now.”

“The American side handed over Aziz and other detainees to the Iraqi side on Tuesday night,” Amman-based lawyer Badie Aref told AFP.

“Aziz called me and said he was being held in the Kazemieh prison in Baghdad.”

Aref urged intervention by international organisations.

Dubai, Jun 06: In view of the growing “deterioration” of health facilities in Iraq, more than 50 Iraqi children have been flown in from Dubai to India to receive life-saving surgery.

Each of the 57 youngsters, aged between one and 18, was accompanied by a parent on their journey to a Bangalore hospital, where most of them will receive heart surgery, a report in ‘The National’ said.

According to the report, the charity group Tareeq al Zuhoor has helped 238 children receive surgeries.

Baghdad, MAy 29: Iraq’s prime minister said Saturday he is the only nominee from his political party to run the nation’s next government, rejecting suggestions of a consensus candidate to satisfy those concerned about his leadership.

Nouri al-Maliki’s comments revealed an unwillingness to budge in negotiations with his Shiite partners over forming Iraq’s likely next government despite a process that has dragged on in the nearly three months since the March 7 election left the country without a clear winner.

Baghdad, May 04: A top Iraqi security official said Tuesday that authorities have dismantled the militant network allegedly behind suicide car bombings in April against three embassies in Baghdad, which killed 46 people.

Military operations spokesman Maj. Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi said police on April 14 arrested members of the network based on evidence given by a failed bomber caught on the day of the attacks against German, Iranian and Egyptian embassies.

Baghdad, April 21: An Iraqi electoral official said Wednesday that a court-ordered recount of Baghdad votes from the inconclusive election could begin as early as next week, a process that could take away the narrow lead of election winner Ayad Allawi over the current prime minister.

A court ruled Monday in favor of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s demand for a recount of 2.5 million votes in Baghdad, handing the incumbent a small victory in his quest to change through the courts the results of the March 7 election for a new, 325-seat legislature.

Baghdad, April 04: Three car bombs in the Iraqi capital killed at least 30 people and wounded 168 on Sunday, an Interior Ministry source said.

The bombings took place near the German, Iranian and Egyptian embassies. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

—Agencies

Baghdad, March 17: Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki and his main rival Iyad Allawi were projected on Wednesday to win the same number of seats in Iraq’s parliament in a dramatic tightening of the country’s election race.

Maliki’s State of Law Alliance and Allawi’s Iraqiya bloc were both on pace to garner 87 seats in Iraq’s Council of Representatives, with less than 9,000 votes separating the two nationwide, according to an AFP projection based on 79 percent of ballots cast.

Baghdad, March 14: New results from Iraq’s elections announced Sunday showed Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s coalition ahead in the southern province of Basra, and his top rival leading in the western province of al-Anbar.

If the preliminary results from last week’s parliamentary polls announced so far hold when final tallies come in later this month, the vote may split along geographic lines, with al-Maliki’s State of Law coalition winning in the south, and former prime minister Ayad Allawi’s Iraqi List winning in the north.

Baghdad, February 26: The Iraqi military will reinstate 20,000 Saddam Hussein-era army officers who were dismissed from their posts after the 2003 US-led invasion for serving under the former dictator, an Iraqi defence spokesman said today.

The announcement, a little over a week before the March 7 parliamentary elections, immediately raised questions about whether the move was timed to pump up votes for Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

Baghdad, February 16: Many Iraqis released by U.S. forces after being detained for suspected links to Sunni insurgents have been killed by tribes seeking revenge or are being driven back into the arms of al Qaeda.

Their desperation adds to fears that Iraq’s March 7 parliamentary election will fail to quell a Sunni insurgency by drawing former militants into the political process, and help heal the wounds of a sectarian war which has killed tens of thousands of Sunnis and Shi’ites since the 2003 U.S. invasion.

Baghdad, February 16: Arbil has played host to a large Iranian book fair in an attempt to expand cultural and economic ties with Iraqi Kurdistan.

Some 15,000 books in various subjects such as politics, philosophy, religion, and science by famous Iranian authors such as the works of Iranian scholar and university lecturer Ayatollah Morteza Motahhari were put on display.

“Iran is very rich in terms of culture, arts and civilization,” said governor of Arbil Nawzad Hadi during the opening ceremony.

Amman, February 09: At least 10 polling stations are to open in Jordan for Iraqi expatriates to take part in their country’s March 7 election, as part of worldwide out-of-country voting, Iraq’s ambassador said on Tuesday.

“We have agreed with Jordan to open from 10 to 15 voting centres in Amman and Irbid and other cities, and an office for the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) has been opened to supervise the voting,” Saad Hayyani said.