Baghdad market bomb kills scores (25.06.2009)

(Quelle:BBC / UK)

Nearly 70 people have been killed by a bomb blast in the eastern Sadr City area of Baghdad, Iraqi officials say. Police said the device went off in a market place in the predominantly Shia area of the Iraqi capital. More than 130 people were also reported to have been injured in the blast, one of the worst in Iraq this year. It comes less than a week before US soldiers pull out of all Iraqi cities, a move the US said would not be affected by a recent surge in violence.

Iraq declares victory as U.S. troops leave cities (20.06.2009)

(Quelle:RFE, RL / International)

Iraq's leader has declared victory as the country began to end a foreign occupation with the withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from cities, and told Iraqis not to lose faith if the pullback resulted in attacks. As part of a security pact signed between Baghdad and Washington last year, U.S. combat forces must leave urban centers by June 30 and the entire force that invaded Iraq in 2003 must be gone by 2012.

UN-supported forum pledges to work out sharing of natural resources (17.06.2009)

(Quelle:UN News / International)

Participants of a high-level United Nations-backed conference on “The Future of Iraq” have committed to working towards the resolution of outstanding issues involving the sharing of energy revenues between the central Government in Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), the UN mission in the country said today.

Combat troops on pace to leave Iraqi cities (16.06.2009)

(Quelle:Washington Post / USA)

U.S. combat troops will leave all Iraqi cities by their scheduled deadline of the end of this month, including Mosul, which remains the country's most dangerous urban area, the commander of U.S. forces said Monday.

After nearly two years, top UN envoy bids farewell to Iraq (15.06.2009)

(Quelle:UN News / International)

The top United Nations envoy to Iraq is leaving the country after almost two years on the job and will be taking up the post of Deputy Executive Director of the World Food Programme (WFP), it was announced today. … Deputy envoy Andrew Gilmour will oversee UNAMI until a new Special Representative is appointed, the Mission noted.

Iraq Sunni leader killed at mosque, fears of fallout (12.06.2009)

(Quelle:Reliefweb / International)

The head of Iraq's biggest Sunni Muslim parliament bloc was killed at a mosque on Friday, officials said, an assassination which could undermine efforts for sectarian reconciliation in Iraq.

Iraq reaffirms Kurdish oil contracts are illegal (10.06.2009)

(Quelle:RFE/RL / International)

Contracts that semi-autonomous Kurdish authorities have signed with private oil firms are illegal until they are ratified by the Oil Ministry in Baghdad, the Iraqi government has reaffirmed.

Iraq moves ahead with vote on U.S. security pact (09.06.2009)

(Quelle:New York Times / USA)

The Iraqi government is pressing ahead with plans to hold a national referendum on the Iraqi-American security agreement — a measure likely to lose if put to a popular vote with the outcome that American troops could be forced to leave as early as next summer, nearly a year and half ahead of schedule. … American diplomats are quietly lobbying the government not to hold the referendum, but so far Iraqi politicians have decided to go ahead with it to avoid appearing to be in the pocket of the Americans in an election year.

Security transition command makes progress in Iraq (08.06.2009)

(Quelle:Reliefweb / International)

Multinational Security Transition Command Iraq is working toward its mission to assist the Iraqi Interior Ministry in generating a professional and credible police force, one of the command's deputy commanders said today. The command also is helping the ministry develop institutional capacity to acquire, train, develop, manage, sustain and resource those forces, Army Maj. Gen. James Milano, deputy commander of the MNSTC-I's interior affairs directorate, said in a Pentagon news conference.

Secretary-General “encouraged” by progress in Iraq (08.06.2009)

(Quelle:UN News / International)

The successful and mostly peaceful polls earlier this year and an agreement on a new Speaker of Parliament are among the “encouraging signs of progress” Iraq has witnessed in recent months, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon writes in a new report. … Additionally, the Iraqi Security Forces continued to show they can assume stepped up security responsibilities, he notes.

Commander says US troops on schedule to leave all Iraqi cities (02.06.2009)

(Quelle:RFE/RL / International)

U.S. combat forces will vacate all Iraqi cities on schedule by the end of this month, including the insurgent stronghold of Mosul, the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq has said. U.S. combat troops are scheduled to leave Iraq's towns and cities by June 30 and redeploy to bases outside, according to a security pact that took effect in January. But some U.S. and Iraqi officials had suggested this might have to be delayed for Mosul, which is still plagued by Al-Qaeda and other insurgent groups, who stage frequent attacks.

Iraqi civilian death toll lowest since 2003 (01.06.2009)

(Quelle:RFE/RL / International)

The number of Iraqi civilians killed fell sharply in May to its lowest since the 2003 invasion, according to figures from Iraq's Health Ministry released on May 31.

The death toll of 134 was slightly under January's record low. It was also less than half the 290 civilians killed in April, when a spate of bombings caused carnage in Baghdad and northern Iraq.

Voter registration in Kurdistan off to good start – UN envoy (01.06.2009)

(Quelle:UN News / International)

The United Nations envoy to Iraq has congratulated the election officials and people of the Northern Region of Kurdistan “for completing a successful and peaceful first week of the voter registration” for next month’s regional elections. Staffan de Mistura, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Iraq, said 89 voter registration update centres successfully opened across the Northern Region of Kurdistan (KRG) and in Baghdad.

In Iraq, assertive Parliament emerges under new speaker (27.05.2009)

(Quelle:Washington Post / USA)

In a test of wills that could shape Iraq's turbulent politics for years to come, the country's parliament has moved decisively against a minister accused of corruption and has threatened to summon Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to answer lawmakers' questions. The struggle over Trade Minister Abdul Falah al-Sudani in recent days is more than just the typical debate between legislative and executive powers.

Army chief: troops could be in Iraq after 2012 (27.05.2009)

(Quelle:Washington Post / USA)

The United States could have fighting forces in Iraq and Afghanistan for a decade, the top Army officer said, even though a signed agreement requires all U.S. forces to be out of Iraq by 2012. Gen. George Casey, Army chief of staff, said Tuesday his planning envisions combat troops in Iraq and Afghanistan for a decade as part of a sustained U.S. commitment to fighting extremism and terrorism in the Middle East.

Iraqi officials expect moves amid inquiry (23.05.2009)

(Quelle:New York Times / USA)

Iraq’s prime minister and Parliament appear to be on the verge of carrying out an extensive housecleaning of senior cabinet officials, with lawmakers on Saturday naming as many as a dozen ministers they intend to question or investigate about allegations of corruption and mismanagement.

Date for Iraq's general election set for January 30 (18.05.2009)

(Quelle:Washington Post / USA)

A senior Iraqi official said Monday that the country's next general election will be held Jan. 30, setting the stage for a vote likely to strengthen the prime minister's hold on power and his efforts to build a government that will rise above sectarian politics. U.S. forces are scheduled to leave Iraqi cities and redeploy to large bases outside of urban areas by June 30, but they should be available to help Iraqi forces maintain security for the Jan. 30 vote.

Tensions stoked between Iraqi Kurds and Sunnis (17.05.2009)

(Quelle:New York Times / USA)

Tensions between Sunni Arabs and Kurds are boiling over in Nineveh, the northern Iraqi province that includes Mosul, as Kurds fight the result of a provincial election in January that shifted power to Arabs. Though strains between the groups are not new, in recent days Kurdish forces have blocked Arab officials from carrying out their duties, in a sign that the Kurds refuse to recognize the regional government’s sovereignty over all of Nineveh. The Kurds have also pressured districts under their control to boycott the new Arab governor, and they said they might even resort to military force unless they were given several positions in the government.

An Iraqi cleric's swift rise and swift fall (14.05.2009)

(Quelle:Washington Post / USA)

The arrest of a local strongman underlines the free-for-all loyalties as the United States begins to depart.

Violence rises in Iraq’s tense north (12.05.2009)

(Quelle:New York Times / USA)

Tensions flared in Iraq’s volatile north on Tuesday with demonstrations in Mosul and a car bomb that killed 7 and wounded 18 in Kirkuk. … Kirkuk is the most contentious point on a tense ethnic fault line between Kurds and Arabs that stretches east from Syria and south along the Iranian border.

Concerns mount on preparedness of Iraq’s forces (08.05.2009)

(Quelle:New York Times / USA)

Iraq’s security forces, despite significant improvements, remain hobbled by shortages of men and equipment, by bureaucracy, corruption, political interference and security breaches that have resulted in the deaths of dozens of Iraqi and American troops already this year, according to officials from both countries.

General sees a longer stay in Iraq cities for U.S. troops (08.05.2009)

(Quelle:New York Times / USA)

The top American general in Iraq said Friday that one-fifth of American combat troops would stay behind in Iraqi cities even after the June 30 deadline that the United States and Iraq had set for the departure. The estimate by Gen. Ray Odierno, at a Pentagon briefing, was the most specific yet for the extension of American combat operations in Baghdad and Mosul. American combat troops have largely moved out of most other urban areas in Iraq, General Odierno said.

Iraq rules out extension of U.S. withdrawal dates (03.05.2009)

(Quelle:Washington Post / USA)

Iraq will not extend withdrawal deadlines for U.S. troops set out in a bilateral accord, ending months of speculation about whether U.S. combat troops would stay beyond June in bases in the restive northern city of Mosul. Government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said Iraq was committed to adhering to the withdrawal schedule in the pact, which took effect on January 1, including the requirement to withdraw U.S. combat troops from towns and cities by the end of June and a full withdrawal by the end of 2011.

Iraq cleric attends Turkey talks (01.05.2009)

(Quelle:BBC / UK)

The Iraqi Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr has made his first public appearance in nearly two years, attending talks in Turkey on the future of Iraq. … Moqtada Sadr has a significant following among Iraq's Shia Muslims but stopped appearing in public after a speech at a mosque in Iraq in June 2007.

Big rise in Iraq deaths in April (01.05.2009)

(Quelle:BBC / UK)

Iraq's government says that 355 Iraqis were killed in April, making it the bloodiest month so far this year. The bulk of the deaths came from a number of big explosions, and the death count did not include at least 80 Iranian pilgrims killed in Iraq. April was also the deadliest month for US troops since September, with 18 soldiers killed.

Attacks across Baghdad leave at least 48 dead, scores injured (30.04.2009)

(Quelle:Washington Post / USA)

Five car bombs and a roadside bomb exploded in Baghdad on Wednesday, killing at least 48 people, the latest in a series of attacks that appear designed to discredit Iraq's security forces as the U.S. military starts to withdraw from urban areas.

The last days of British forces in Iraq (30.04.2009)

(Quelle:BBC / UK)

The end of the UK's military presence in Iraq is imminent after six years. A memorial service is taking place in Basra for the 179 British personnel who have died during the conflict, attended by Defence Secretary John Hutton. … Defence officials say plans for the withdrawal of British forces in Iraq are well advanced.

Despite security boost, human rights situation still worrying, says UN (29.04.2009)

(Quelle:UN News / International)

Although the security situation continues to improve in Iraq, a range of human rights abuses continue to be perpetrated in the strife-torn nation, according to a new United Nations report.

Costs soar as Iraq falls behind on training plan, audit says (28.04.2009)

(Quelle:New York Times / USA)

Iraq is falling far behind schedule to create a system to maintain its own military equipment, costing American taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars to fill in the gaps, according to a new United States audit. The United States military sees Iraq’s ability to take on such duties as essential for the country to maintain a self-sufficient force after American forces leave at the end of 2011.

“No delay” in US withdrawal from Iraq (27.04.2009)

(Quelle:BBC / UK)

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki has said the recent wave of attacks in the country were isolated incidents which did not threaten overall security improvement, and would not delay the withdrawal of American forces. At least 150 people were killed in just two days of suicide bomb attacks at the end of last week. But Mr Maliki, in an exclusive BBC interview, said his government at the moment had no intention of taking up an American offer to keep troops in some Iraqi cities beyond the end of June, when they are supposed to leave.