Suicide Bomb Kills 50 in Iraq

(NEWSER) - The recent spate of violence in Iraq may pale in comparison to the relentless suicide bombings of 2006, but Baghdad is beginning to hunker down in fear again, the Los Angeles Times reports. Residents are curtailing their public activities, checking in with each other more often to make sure family members are okay, and worrying about the imminent withdrawal of US troops. More»

Defection deepens political crisis as suicide bombs kill 70

(NEWSER) - The Sunni Accordance Front defected from Iraq's government today, accusing PM Nuri al-Maliki of being uncooperative, Reuters reports, on a day when suicide bombs killed more than 70 in Baghdad. "This is probably the most serious political crisis we have faced since the passage of the constitution,'' a deputy PM said of the troubled government. More»

More than taken 100 hostage in Baghdad yesterday

(NEWSER) - Dozens are dead and more than 50 wounded after militants took nearly 100 hostage in a Catholic church in Baghdad yesterday, prompting Iraqi anti-terrorist forces to storm the building. Officials say most of the injuries and deaths occurred after the kidnappers set off two suicide vests, the New York Times reports. “All the terrorists” were killed and several suspects were arrested, said the minister of defense, who defended the decision to intervene and called it a "successful operation." More»

(NEWSER) - Iraq was rocked by two deadly, possibly destabilizing bombings this weekend, but the proof is in the reprisals, Larry Kaplow writes in Newsweek—and there were none. “Iraq today is a different place than it was when ethnic conflict threatened to engulf the country in 2006,” Kaplow continues. “The powder here is wetter than it once was.” And that’s due mostly to Shiite military power and restraint in the face of Sunni attacks. More»

Will meet leaders, thank troops in mission's 'endgame'

(NEWSER) - President Bush has arrived in Baghdad on a surprise farewell trip, the BBC reports. A day after Defense Secretary Robert Gates said the US mission in Iraq is in its “endgame,” Bush met with President Jalal Talabani; he’ll meet with other "leaders, thank the troops, and celebrate the new security agreement” that calls for withdrawal by 2011, a White House rep said. More»