BAGHDAD — Waving national flags and banners denouncing U.S. President Donald Trump, tens of thousands of Iraqis marched peacefully through Baghdad on Friday to demand the ouster of U.S. troops from their country in a protest organized by a populist Shiite cleric. Later Friday night, two anti-government protesters were shot...
Militiamen Breach US Embassy in Baghdad; Trump Blames Iran
BAGHDAD — Angered by deadly airstrikes targeting an Iran-backed militia, dozens of Iraqi Shiite militiamen and their supporters broke into the U.S. Embassy compound in Baghdad on Tuesday, smashing a main door and setting fire to a reception area in one of the worst attacks on the embassy in recent...
Masked Gunmen Attack Protesters in Iraq Holy City; 18 Killed
BAGHDAD — Masked gunmen opened fire at Iraqi protesters in the Shiite holy city of Karbala on Tuesday, killing 18 people and wounding hundreds, security officials said, in one of the deadliest single attacks since anti-government demonstrations erupted earlier this month. The overnight attack came as Iraqis took to the...
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,...
Israel Says Its Jets Struck Iranian Military Sites in Syria
JERUSALEM — The Israeli military said its jets struck Iranian military targets in Syria early Monday, an announcement that marked a rare departure from Israel's years-long policy of ambiguity regarding activities in neighboring Syria. The military said the targets included munition storage facilities, an intelligence site and a military training...
Houthi Rebels Block Food Deliveries to Starving Yemeni: UN Official
RIMBO, Sweden — The head of the U.N. food agency has accused Shiite Houthi rebels of blocking access to food deliveries to civilians devastated by the war in Yemen. World Food Program chief David Beasley, who has previously criticized the Saudi-led coalition for a blockade of Yemeni ports, told The...
US Slaps Terrorist Designation on Iran-Linked Group
WASHINGTON — The United States designated a Shiite militant group in Bahrain as a foreign terrorist organization Tuesday to ramp up pressure on Iran. The al-Ashtar Brigades are "yet another in a long line of Iranian-sponsored terrorists who kill on behalf of a corrupt regime," Nathan Sales, the coordinator for...
Zakaria: Regime Change Drives Trump on Iran
President Trump's withdrawal from the six-nation Iran nuclear agreement last week left many in the international community, including close U.S. allies, scratching their heads. "It's hard to understand the rationale behind Trump's decision," says Washington Post columnist Fareed Zakaria in his May 10 commentary. "If there is a strategy behind Trump's move,...