WASHINGTON (RFE/RL) — The United Nations refugee agency has welcomed U.S. plans to take in at least 7,000 Iraqi refugees. Washington will also provide some $18 million to help with the larger problem of displaced people from Iraq.
The plans represent a change for the United States, which has taken in only about 600 refugees since […]

GUAM - The top American military officer is standing by remarks he made Monday that appear to contradict U.S. military officials Baghdad, who said Iran’s government is providing powerful bombs to Iraqi insurgents. The general also says the United States has no intention of attacking Iran.
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Peter […]

IRBIL - Iraqi officials have announced they will close all checkpoints on the Iranian and Syrian borders, as part of the new plan to crack down on religious militias and end the rampant sectarian cleansing in the capital. Baghdad’s most powerful Shi’ite militia is denying American allegations its leader has fled to Iran.
Iraqi General Abboud […]

WASHINGTON (RFE/RL) — Like all oil and gas majors, the Royal Dutch/Shell Group has its eyes open for new sources of supply as global demand for energy grows. Iran is just such a possible source, with the world’s second biggest reserves of natural gas.
The Anglo-Dutch group has made the first step toward a multibillion-dollar deal […]

WHITE HOUSE - U.S. President George Bush says pulling U.S. troops out of Baghdad would only lead to more violence. Mr. Bush is rejecting congressional resolutions opposing his sending more troops to Iraq.
President Bush says legislators who do not believe America can succeed in Iraq and want U.S. troops there to leave are pursuing what […]

TEHRAN (RFE/RL) — Iranian news agencies report that at least 11 people were killed today when a bus transporting employees of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards was targeted in a car-bomb attack.
The bombing took place in the city of Zahedan, located near the country’s border with Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The deadly explosion occurred in the early morning hours.
Iran’s […]

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House of Representatives is holding its first full debate over Iraq since the opposition Democrats took control of Congress.
At issue is whether to pass a resolution opposing President George W. Bush’s decision to send additional troops to Iraq.
The House of Representatives is devoting three days to the debate, which began on […]

By Mark Ellis
Senior Correspondent, ASSIST News ServiceTIBURON, CALIFORNIA (ANS) – Stanford University student Calla Papademus answered an ad offering $50,000 for egg “donation” that sounded like easy money. She didn’t realize the risks of egg harvesting, suffered a stroke, and spent more than six weeks in a coma. Having survived a narrow brush with death, […]

BEIJING - Delegates to talks aimed at ending North Korea’s nuclear weapons have reached an agreement on steps toward dismantling Pyongyang’s nuclear programs.
The senior Chinese negotiator at the talks, Wu Dawei, closed Tuesday’s final session by congratulating the six nations for the progress they made toward ending a long dispute over North Korea’s nuclear weapons.
Wu […]

Negotiators Reach Deal On North Korean Nukes 
BEIJING - International negotiators say North Korea has agreed to shut down its main nuclear reactor and eventually dismantle its nuclear program in return for fuel aid.
Chinese envoy Wu Dawei, announcing the deal in Beijing after a week of talks, said a major breakthrough was reached.
 
“With the disarmament of North […]

WHITE HOUSE - The White House says it stands by evidence showing a link between Iran and weapons found in Iraq. Iran’s president says his country is not instigating conflict.
White House spokesman Tony Snow says the evidence is sound.
“There is evidence there has been some weaponry coming across the Iraqi border
Snow says the latest disclosure […]

WASHINGTON - In his annual economic report, President Bush says the U.S. economy is likely to continue growing at about a three percent rate this year, while inflation remains under control and personal incomes rise.
The president’s top economist, former Stanford University professor Ed Lazear, says the U.S. economy is balanced and robust.
“My job is an […]

BEIRUT - Two explosions, which occurred minutes apart, tore through two passenger buses on a mountainside road, north of Beirut. More than 11 people may have died in the blasts.
Twisted metal and torn seat cushions litter the bloodstained pavement as rescue workers pull victims from the wreckage of two minibuses and a dozen cars.
Intermittent rain […]

JERUSALEM - The mayor of Jerusalem has postponed construction work on a walkway leading to Jerusalem’s Dome of the Rock Mosque. Work at the site during the past week has sparked controversy and riots among Jerusalem’s Muslim population. 
In a surprise decision, Jerusalem’s Jewish ultra-Orthodox mayor, Uri Lupolianski has ordered a review of construction work that […]

TEHRAN – Iran has dismissed U.S. accusations that the “highest levels” of Iran’s government are responsible for supplying sophisticated roadside bombs to Shi’ite Muslim insurgents in Iraq.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini said today that the “unacceptable allegations” are “baseless” propaganda.
U.S. military officials told reporters in Baghdad on February 11 that such bombs had killed […]

CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA - The top American military officer, General Peter Pace, declined Monday to endorse the conclusions of U.S. military officers in Baghdad, who told reporters on Sunday that the Iranian government is providing high-powered roadside bombs to insurgents in Iraq. General Pace made his comments during a visit to Australia.
General Pace said he was not […]

IRBIL - As Baghdad residents prepare for new security measures they hope will reduce the capital’s chaotic violence, attacks continued elsewhere in the country.
Officials say a suicide truck bombing in Tikrit Sunday killed at least 15 people, and eight border guard recruits were reported gunned down near the Syrian border.U.S. and Iraqi forces in Baghdad […]

WASHINGTON — Foreign ministers of the 27 European Union member countries meeting in Brussels have approved plans for implementing UN sanctions against Iran.
The UN Security Council imposed sanctions in December targeting people and programs linked to Iran’s nuclear program due to Iran’s refusal to halt uranium enrichment.
A technical snag involving Spain and Britain had threatened […]

By Pfc. Benjamin Gable, USA
Special to American Forces Press Service
CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq  – “Snail mail” is quickly becoming a thing of the past for deployed soldiers thanks to the 1st Cavalry Division’s commitment to keeping families close through video teleconferences.  
“The guys love using the VTC capabilities here, and we stay busy all the time,” said […]

By Linda D. Kozaryn
American Forces Press Service
SEVILLE, Spain – Multinational forces in Iraq recently captured some Iranians during sweeps to find networks that build and emplace improvised explosive devices, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here yesterday.
Although Gates had no details about the devices, he said the sophistication of the technology and other evidence ties […]

WASHINGTON — The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) announced today that it has signed an agreement with the German Federal Police (Bundeskriminalant or BKA) that will allow the Germans to use ATF’s eTrace system to electronically trace crime guns seized in their country.
The agreement, signed this week by ATF National Tracing Center […]

IRBIL - General David Petraeus has taken over as commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, during a time that he called a “decisive moment” for the country’s future. In an address at his official handover ceremony Saturday, General Petraeus said the prospects for ending violence are good. 
During Saturday’s ceremony at the U.S. military’s “Camp Victory” […]

JERUSALEM - There were violent clashes Friday at Jerusalem’s Dome of the Rock between Israeli security forces and Muslim worshippers angered over a controversial Israeli archeological dig at the base of the complex. 
Stun grenades and tear gas scattered hundreds of protesters in and around the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem’s old city.
Tensions have been […]

WASHINGTON - Two more presidential candidates, Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Mitt Romney, will formally announce their entry into the 2008 race for the White House over the next few days. 
Senator Obama will make his formal announcement in his home state of Illinois on Saturday. In addition to being the only African-American candidate in the […]

WASHINGTON (RFE/RL) — The U.S. military announced the official opening on February 5 of the joint Iraqi-U.S. Baghdad operations command center in preparation for the massive security operation to take control of Baghdad. U.S. military officials described the operation as unlike anything the city has seen and expressed optimism that the violence in the Iraqi […]