Iraq

US military deaths in Iraq war at 4,368
AP – 2 mins ago

As of Thursday, Dec. 10, 2009, at least 4,368 members of the U.S. military had died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. Full Story »
Maliki, pressed over bombings, offers up interior minister
McClatchy Newspapers – 2 hrs 46 mins ago

BAGHDAD — Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki, challenged by parliament Thursday to explain the lapses that led to a recent series of devastating car bombings, distanced himself from his interior minister and blamed the security gaps on "political infighting." Full Story »
Iraq closes in on big oil deals but short of power
Reuters – Thu Dec 10, 4:42 pm ET

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Awash with oil, Iraq is poised to ink several mega oil deals that will vault it into the top ranks of world oil producers, but the war-shattered country is back to grappling massive power shortages after a brief respite. Full Story »
Maliki says rivals putting Iraqi security at risk
AFP – Thu Dec 10, 2:25 pm ET

AFP

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki accused rivals on Thursday of stoking political rows which have put Iraq's security at risk, as US Defence Secretary Robert Gates made a surprise visit to Baghdad. Full Story »
US defence secretary vows support on post-bombing Iraq visit
AFP – Thu Dec 10, 2:24 pm ET

AFP/Pool

BAGHDAD (AFP) - US Defence Secretary Robert Gates assured Iraq of continued support during a surprise visit to Baghdad on Thursday, as the Pentagon insisted its troop pullout was on track despite a surge in violence. Full Story »
Iraq seeks to shift Iranian group to desert camp
AP – Thu Dec 10, 1:57 pm ET

AFP/Graphic

BAGHDAD - Iraq announced plans Thursday to move members of an Iranian opposition group to a former desert detention camp in a sharp escalation of pressure on a faction that poses complications for both Baghdad and Washington. Full Story »
Iraq to auction oilfields in bid to boost output
AFP – Thu Dec 10, 1:50 pm ET

AFP/File

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Major foreign oil firms will converge on Baghdad on Friday for an auction of 10 oilfields as Iraq bids to ramp up output dramatically and become one of the world's biggest crude producers. Full Story »
U.S. affirms Iraq withdrawal plan, PM answers for attacks
Reuters – Thu Dec 10, 1:40 pm ET

AFPTV

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Delayed elections in Iraq and a bloody attack this week will not derail U.S. troop withdrawal plans, U.S. officials said as Defense Secretary Robert Gates flew into Baghdad to meet Iraqi leaders. Full Story »
Al-Qaida claims this week's deadly Baghdad blasts
AP – Thu Dec 10, 12:02 pm ET

AP

BAGHDAD - Al-Qaida's umbrella group in Iraq claimed responsibility Thursday for coordinated Baghdad bombings this week that killed 127 people and wounded more than 500, warning of more strikes to come against the Iraqi government. Full Story »
Iraq's March vote won't affect troop plan, U.S. says
Reuters – Thu Dec 10, 11:52 am ET

Reuters

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates met Iraqi leaders on Thursday as U.S. commanders said plans to reduce troop levels sharply by next summer were on track despite delayed elections and a major al Qaeda attack. President Barack Obama has pledged to end combat operations in Iraq by August 31, 2010, before a full pullout by the end of 2011. The U.S. force in Iraq is supposed to be reduced to 50,000 by end of August from around 115,000 now. Full Story »
Defense Secretary Gates arrives in Iraq
AP – Thu Dec 10, 11:43 am ET

AP

BAGHDAD - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates was in Iraq Thursday to meet with Iraqi officials amid a wave of bombings that have claimed 127 lives and rattled the country's government. U.S. military leaders who greeted Gates defended the Iraqi security forces' response to the attacks. Full Story »
Iraq to transfer Iran ex-rebels
AFP – Thu Dec 10, 11:37 am ET

AFP/HO/File

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Baghdad is to move disarmed Iranian rebels from a camp close to the border to southern Iraq before deporting them, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said in remarks released on Thursday. Full Story »
US commander says Iran still arming Iraq militias
AFP – Thu Dec 10, 10:05 am ET

AFP/File

BAGHDAD (AFP) - The number two US commander in Iraq, Lieutenant General Charles Jacoby, charged on Thursday that neighbouring Iran was still providing weapons and funds to militia groups undermining stability. Full Story »
On Syria border: No sign of Saddam loyalists
AP – Thu Dec 10, 9:13 am ET

AP

RABIYA, Iraq - Iraq's border with Syria runs for hundreds of miles through barren land patrolled by a relative scattering of security forces. But despite claims about exiled Saddam Hussein loyalists sneaking across to disrupt Iraq's upcoming elections, the only evidence around one key outpost is faded slogans of Saddam's banned Baath Party painted on the wall of a decaying grain elevator. Full Story »
Iraqi PM faces grilling over spate of bombings
AFP – Thu Dec 10, 7:13 am ET

AFP

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, grilled by furious MPs Thursday over bombings that rocked Baghdad, intimated that a row over who should be intelligence chief was endangering the country's security. Full Story »
Embattled Iraq insurgency shifts tactics, eyes poll
Reuters – Thu Dec 10, 7:08 am ET

Reuters

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Local security forces helped tame much of the violence that has plagued Iraq since 2003, but the political maneuvering ahead of the March 7 parliamentary poll magnifies festering sectarian divisions and gives insurgents a chance to make an impact. Full Story »
US: American soldier dies in Iraq
AP – Thu Dec 10, 6:20 am ET

BAGHDAD - The U.S. military says an American soldier in Iraq has died of injuries unrelated to combat. Full Story »
AP – Thu Dec 10, 5:53 am ET

BAGHDAD - Defense Secretary Robert Gates arrives in Baghdad for meetings with troops, Iraqi leaders. Full Story »