Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Iraq News Updates -- August 17, 2011



Biggest Threat to Iraq? Iran-Backed Militias, Not Al Qaeda, US Official Says -- Christian Science Monitor

The series of bombings that hit Iraq Monday bear the markings of Al Qaeda, but in the long term, Iran-backed militias are a greater problem, says a top US military official.

On the heels one of the deadliest weeks of the year in Iraq, a senior US military official says Iranian-backed militias, not Al Qaeda in Iraq, pose the gravest threat to the country’s future.

Though the car bomb attacks that hit 13 cities in Iraq Monday bear the markings of Al Qaeda in Iraq, militias are the greater concern because of the support they “are getting on a daily basis from Iran," said Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Buchanan, spokesman for US forces in Iraq.

The military has found caches of rockets supplied by Iran and “manufactured as recently as 2010," he added.

Read more
....

More News On Iraq

US general: Iran-backed groups biggest Iraq threat -- AP
Iranian-Backed Militias Pose Top Threat to Iraq, General Says -- Bloomberg
Iran is the biggest threat to Iraq's security, says Pentagon official -- CNN
U.S. official says Iraq can defend itself -- USA Today
US recently carried out two air strikes in Iraq: general -- AFP
U.S. Says It Carried Out Unilateral Air Strikes In Iraq -- Radio Free Europe
Official: Bloodiest day of the year won’t change U.S. drawdown, Iraq’s government will -- Stars and Stripes
Official: U.S. withdrawal plans in Iraq unchanged -- UPI
Al-Qaeda Targeting Police and Security Forces in Iraq -- Blog Critics
Iraq's bloodiest day revives al Qaeda fears -- Reuters
Bloody Ramadan: More Than 100 Killed in Iraq So Far -- CNS News

Attacks in Iraq Heighten Political Tensions -- New York Times
Iraq PM names interim defence minister: aide -- AFP
IRAQ: Nouri Maliki's uneasy alliance with Muqtada Sadr's movement -- L.A. Times

IRAQ: Is al-Maliki taking sides with U.S. enemies? -- Kevin Baron, Stars and Stripes
Al Maliki has to make some tough choices -- Gulf News editorial
Surging Iraq violence: Have we seen this story before? -- Dan Murphy, Christian Science Monitor
Iraq’s ‘burning’ question -- Khaleej Times editorial
TIMELINE-Deadliest attacks in Iraq in last year -- Reuters
Iraq profile and timeline -- BBC

No comments: