Iraq Army

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Iraq Army Fends Off ISIS Fighters in Iraqi Uniforms

US forces were far from attack on airbase

(Newser) - Some 20 to 25 ISIS fighters clad in Iraq Army uniforms descended on an Iraqi base yesterday, but Iraqi forces were able to defeat them, ABC News reports. An ISIS group wearing suicide vests were first to attack the base; CBS News reports that eight suicide bombers made their way...

As Qaeda Surges, US Sends Iraq Arms—but Precious Few

75 Hellfire missiles and 10 drones won't do the trick: expert

(Newser) - A call for help from Iraqi PM Nouri al-Maliki has been answered, sort of: The US is sending dozens of missiles and drones to Iraq to help combat a burgeoning al-Qaeda that's driving the country's highest level of violence since 2008, the New York Times reports. The aid—...

Iraqi Officers Behind $4.8M Bank Heist

(Newser) - The Iraqi robbers who killed eight security guards and stole $4.8 million from a Baghdad bank this week were army officers, not insurgents, the Los Angeles Times reports. Iraqi police revealed today the arrest of four elite officers assigned to guard Shiite Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi. "It was...

US Commanders Chafe at Iraq's Tight New Restrictions

(Newser) - The Iraq government has tightly restricted the movements and activities of American troops remaining in cities, and some commanders blame the restrictions for a rise in attacks, the Washington Post. The day after Iraqis celebrated the pullback of US troops to outside cities, Iraq ordered the US military to cease...

Iraqis Celebrate 'Sovereignty Day' as US Pulls Back

Maliki declares June 30 'National Sovereignty Day'

(Newser) - Iraqi forces have assumed formal control of security in Baghdad and other cities after US combat troops withdrew from urban areas. A countdown clock broadcast on Iraqi TV ticked to zero as the midnight deadline passed for combat troops to pull back. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has declared a public...

16 Iraqi Soldiers Killed in Suicide Attack on Base

Bomber was dressed in Iraqi army uniform: colonel

(Newser) - A suicide bomber dressed in an Iraqi army uniform detonated an explosives belt today among Iraqi soldiers lined up for lunch at a base west of Baghdad, killing at least 16 and wounding 50, Iraqi officials said. Iraqi soldiers and US troops share the base, in the former Sunni insurgent...

Iraqi Deaths Continue, But Get Less Notice
Iraqi Deaths Continue, But Get Less Notice
ANALYSIS

Iraqi Deaths Continue, But Get Less Notice

'No one values the victims' as war winds down, mourners say

(Newser) - Abu Ghraib, once a symbol of Saddam Hussein’s tyranny and later of the darkest hour of the US occupation of Iraq, is the latest symbol of how the nation and media now treat death there, Anthony Shadid writes in the Washington Post. 33 people died there Tuesday in a...

Iraq Officials Busted in Coup Plot

Generals, old regime members arrested in Ministry of Interior sweep

(Newser) - Iraq has arrested up to 35 Ministry of the Interior officials over the last three days for their part in a plot to revive Saddam Hussein's Baath party, the New York Times reports. Some being held were in the early stages of planning a coup, say officials. Four generals were...

Bombings Kill 31 in Baghdad, Mosul

Suicide attacks rock police academy, US-Iraqi patrol

(Newser) - Suicide bombers struck today near a Baghdad police academy and in Mosul against a joint US-Iraqi patrol, together killing 31 people, Iraqi officials said. In Baghdad, a car bomb exploded outside the heavily fortified academy. Minutes later, a suicide attacker blew himself up as police rushed to respond to the...

Holiday Blasts Kill 19 Iraqis Near Shia Sites

6 others shot on bus in effort to reignite sectarian violence

(Newser) - Suicide bombers targeted Shia worshipers as they left morning prayers today at two Baghdad mosques, killing 19 people and injuring 50, police say. In a separate attack, gunmen fatally shot six people as they traveled in a minibus 60 miles north of Baghdad. Attacks on Shia civilians are widely associated...

Maturing Iraqi Army Enabled US Troop Deal
Maturing Iraqi Army Enabled US Troop Deal
ANALYSIS

Maturing Iraqi Army Enabled US Troop Deal

2011 withdrawal probable thanks to tougher local forces

(Newser) - The US's preliminary agreement with Iraq to withdraw most combat troops by 2011 would have been unthinkable even a few months ago. Declining levels of violence, a ceasefire with the Mahdi Army, and the about-face of Sunni leaders have all helped, the Wall Street Journal reports, but for the administration,...

Iraq Cracks Down on US-Allied Sunni Fighters

US commanders fear reversal of hard-fought peace

(Newser) - Iraq's Shiite-dominated government has begun a crackdown on groups of US-backed Sunni fighters, the New York Times reports. The government fears the fighters, part of what is called the Awakening movement, could be waiting to turn their guns on Shiites. In several parts of the country senior members have been...

Iraqi Troops: 'We're Not Ready to Go It Alone'

Officers decry lack of equipment; US pushes independence

(Newser) - Iraq’s army has taken strides toward independence—but it still needs the help of American forces, say Iraqi troops and officers interviewed by the New York Times. “We are too many years behind other countries. We need the coalition forces until 2015,” said one officer. But American...

US, Iraqi Forces Launch Major Offensive

Diyala target of big push

(Newser) - US and Iraqi forces have launched a major operation in Diyala province, which they consider the last major refuge for insurgents near Baghdad, the AP reports. Authorities have set up new checkpoints and banned all but official traffic as troops zero in on the capital city of Baquba, hoping to...

Iraqi Army Rolls Into Sadr City
 Iraqi Army Rolls Into Sadr City 

Iraqi Army Rolls Into Sadr City

No bloodshed so far in peaceful takeover

(Newser) - Roughly 10,000 Iraqi troops peacefully marched deep into Sadr City today, the Baghdad ghetto that’s long been a stronghold for Muqtada al Sadr’s Mahdi Army. The incursion was part of a deal negotiated with Sadr last week, which allowed for inspections so long as the US wasn't...

False Alarm: Al-Qaeda Boss Still Loose in Iraq

Iraqis got the wrong guy, military says

(Newser) - Iraqi officials jumped the gun yesterday when they announced the capture of the top commander of Al-Qaeda in Iraq, the US military said today. It turns out the man they captured isn’t Abu Ayyub al-Masri; he just has a similar name. The hunt for the real al-Masri, who has...

Iraqi Army Nabs Key Militant Leader

Soldiers in Mosul arrest chief of Al-Qaeda in Iraq

(Newser) - The Iraqi army has arrested the leader of the terrorist group Al-Qaeda in Iraq, the AP reports today. Defense officials said they took Abu Ayyub al-Masri into custody in Mosul. He has led the group—which last month called for stepped-up attacks against US forces—since 2006. Masri helped set...

Dead Soldiers Beef Up Iraqis' Troop Count

US audit says many in special forces aren't actually serving

(Newser) - The number of men in Iraq's security forces is estimated to be a healthy 530,000. Trouble is, a "substantial number" of them are injured, dead, or AWOL, a new government audit says. The review casts doubt on Pentagon reports about Iraqi capabilities and questions Baghdad's ability to train...

Iraqi Troops Seize Sadr Stronghold
Iraqi Troops Seize
Sadr Stronghold

Iraqi Troops Seize Sadr Stronghold

Fighting in Baghad kills 12, wounds 130

(Newser) - In a major new clash, Iraqi troops backed by American and British firepower today captured a stronghold of fighters loyal to Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr in Basra, said Iraqi officials. In a show of force, American planes and British artillery attacked a deserted area outside the Sadr-controlled section of Hayaniya...

Iraqis Buck US, Flee Front Line in Sadr City Fight

'We don’t see any progress being made at all,' American soldier says

(Newser) - An Iraqi Army unit fled its position in Sadr City last night, despite American protestations, the New York Times reports, breeding further doubt among US commanders. A captain begged the Iraqi in charge to reconsider. “If you turn around … those soldiers will follow you,” he said. “...

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