BAGHDAD — Iraqi police fired live shots into the air as well as rubber bullets and dozens of tear gas canisters Friday to disperse thousands of anti-government protesters, sending young demonstrators running for cover and enveloping a main bridge in the capital Baghdad with thick white smoke. Eight protesters were...
Trump Lifts Sanctions on Turkey, Says Cease-Fire Permanent
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Wednesday he will lift sanctions on Turkey after the NATO ally agreed to permanently stop fighting Kurdish forces in Syria and he defended his decision to withdraw American troops. “We’re getting out,” Trump said at the White House, asserting that tens of thousands of Kurdish lives...
AP FACT CHECK: Dems Flub Details on Guns, Syria in Debate
WASHINGTON — A dozen Democrats seeking the presidency tussled in a debate packed with policy, flubbing some details in the process. Several gave an iffy explanation Tuesday of why they're not swinging behind a bold proposal to make people turn over their assault-style weapons. Sloppiness also crept in during robust exchanges over...
Trump Threatens to 'Destroy' Turkey's Economy With Sanctions
WASHINGTON — Targeting Turkey's economy, President Donald Trump announced sanctions aimed at restraining the Turks' assault against Kurdish fighters and civilians in Syria — an assault Turkey began after Trump announced he was moving U.S. troops out of the way. Some of those U.S. troops leaving northern Syria are being shifted to...
US to Hand Over to Iraq IS Members Evacuated From Syria
BAGHDAD — Two Iraqi intelligence officials say the U.S. is planning to hand over to Iraqi authorities dozens of members of the Islamic State group recently transferred from Syria. The officials said the nearly 50 militants are expected to be handed over in the coming hours. They spoke on condition...
Iraq's Top Cleric Urges Calm as Deadly Clashes Continue
BAGHDAD — Security forces opened fire on hundreds of anti-government demonstrators Friday in central Baghdad, killing one protester, hours after Iraq's top Shiite cleric warned both sides to end four days of deadly violence "before it's too late." At least 43 people have died in clashes during the continuing protests,...
Veterans With PTSD, Anxiety Turn to Beekeeping for Relief
MANCHESTER, N.H. — Gently lifting a wooden frame containing dozens of Italian honeybees, Vince Ylitalo seemed transfixed as he and several other veterans inspected the buzzing insects. "This is really cool," he said, pointing to a bee with blobs of orange pollen on its hind legs. Ylitalo, who has battled...
US Contractor Sentenced in Iraq Shooting Seeks New Trial
WASHINGTON — A former State Department contractor sentenced to life in prison for his role in the 2007 shooting deaths of Iraqi civilians is asking for a new trial because of what he says is newly discovered evidence. Lawyers for former Blackwater employee Nicholas Slatten said they received a State...
Israel Blamed for Hit on Iran-Backed Militia Depot in Iraq
BAGHDAD — An Israeli airstrike on an Iranian weapons depot in Iraq, confirmed by U.S. officials, is threatening to destabilize security in the volatile country that has struggled to remain neutral in the conflict between Washington and Tehran. It would be the first known Israeli airstrike in Iraq since 1981,...
US Beefing up Forces in Middle East to Counter Iran
WASHINGTON — The U.S. will send hundreds of additional troops and a dozen fighter jets to the Middle East in the coming weeks to counter what the Pentagon said is an escalating campaign by Iran to plan attacks against the U.S. and its interests in the region. And for the...