washingtonpost.com - Iraq -- Washington Post Continuing Coverage

U.S. Military Plans Polls and Focus Groups in Iraq

Walter Pincus — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

The U.S. military is planning a large polling and focus-group operation in Iraq over the next three years to help "build robust and positive relations with the people of Iraq and to assist the Iraqi people in forming a new government," according to a proposal seeking private contractors for the...

Western Journalists in Iraq Stage Pullback of Their Own

Ernesto Londoño and Amit R. Paley — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD -- The number of foreign journalists in Baghdad is declining sharply, a media withdrawal that reflects Iraq's growing stability and the financial strains faced by some news organizations.

24 Killed, 45 Injured in Bombings and Shootings Across Iraq

Mary Beth Sheridan and Qais Mizher — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD, Oct. 10 -- A car bomb exploded in a market in southern Baghdad late Friday afternoon, killing at least 14 people and prompting an outburst of sectarian rioting, according to police and witnesses.

Blast Leaves Iraqi Lawmaker Dead

Ernesto Londoño — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD, Oct. 9 -- A senior lawmaker loyal to anti-American Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr was fatally wounded Thursday morning in a roadside bombing in Baghdad, raising concerns about the potential for violence ahead of provincial elections expected early next year.

Use of 'Sticky IEDs' Rising in Iraq

Ernesto Londoño — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD, Oct. 8 -- Iraqi insurgents are increasingly using magnetically attached bombs known as "sticky IEDs" to assassinate mid- and low-level Iraqi officials, Iraqi and U.S. officials said.

Suicide Bomber Kills 10 In Iraq's Diyala Province

Ernesto Londoño — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD, Oct. 8 -- A suicide bomber killed at least 10 people in Diyala province Wednesday morning in an attack that appeared to target Iraqi security forces, Iraqi officials said.

Economic Crisis Dominates Debate

Dan Balz, Anne E. Kornblut and Michael Abramowitz — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

NASHVILLE, Oct. 7 -- On a day when the stock market took another sharp plunge, presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama clashed repeatedly here Tuesday night over the causes of the economic meltdown that has shaken the country and offered sharply contrasting prescriptions for how to r...

For Sunnis, an Uneasy Return Home

Sudarsan Raghavan — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD -- Khalid al-Mashadani pounded on the white gate of his house.

Iraqi Says Pact With U.S. Is Near

Sudarsan Raghavan — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD, Oct. 7 -- Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said Tuesday that "bold political decisions" will be needed to approve a deal to extend the presence of U.S. troops in Iraq past the end of the year.

Arab League Ambassador Arrives in Baghdad

Mary Beth Sheridan — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD, Oct. 6 -- The Arab League dispatched an ambassador to Baghdad on Monday, the latest sign of progress in the Iraqi and U.S. effort to ease this country's diplomatic isolation.

A Joyful Welcome Home for Detainees

Andrea Bruce — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

Flipping back a canvas tarp, 12 men squint at the dusty sun and jump, one by one, off the bed of a U.S. military transport truck, dropping to their knees in prayer. They are free.

Retaliatory Turkish Airstrikes Target Kurdish Rebels in Iraq

Ellen Knickmeyer — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

ISTANBUL, Oct. 5 -- Turkey staged retaliatory airstrikes against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq on Sunday as thousands of Turks attended rain-lashed funerals for 15 soldiers killed by the rebels in a cross-border attack.

Bomber Strikes During Raid in Iraq

Mary Beth Sheridan — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD, Oct. 5 -- A suicide bomber detonated an explosives-laden vest inside a home in northern Iraq as U.S. forces were trading gunfire with its occupants, according to the American military. Eleven Iraqis were killed in the operation early Sunday.

Senior Leader of Insurgents Killed in Baghdad, U.S. Says

Ernesto Londoño — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD, Oct. 3 -- U.S. soldiers killed a man in Baghdad on Friday whom the military described as a senior leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq.

Attacks Belie Steps on Reconciliation

Mary Beth Sheridan — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD, Oct. 2 -- A pair of suicide bombers struck around 8 a.m. Thursday, as Shiite worshipers streamed out of morning prayers at two mosques in Baghdad, killing at least 16 people and injuring more than 50. North of the capital, gunmen opened fire on a minibus outside the city of Baqubah, kill...

A Delicate Changing of the Guard

Mary Beth Sheridan — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD, Oct. 1 -- The Iraqi government on Wednesday began assuming control of the U.S.-backed armed groups that have helped curtail violence here, in a high-stakes test for the American strategy to stabilize Iraq.

Castigating the Culprits

Howard Kurtz — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 07:33:00 EDT

Finally, something that Washington is good at--yelling about who's to blame.

Violence Declines Further in Iraq

Ann Scott Tyson — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

Violence in Iraq dropped further during the summer although security gains remain "reversible and uneven," with the main threats coming from Iranian-backed militias and the Shiite-led Iraqi government's slow integration of volunteer Sunni fighters, according to a Pentagon report released yesterday.

Baghdad Residents Gather in the Open for Holiday

Mary Beth Sheridan — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD, Sept. 30 -- Ever since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, Um Abdullah has kept her four children inside on holidays, terrified by the bombings and kidnappings that were tearing the country apart. But on Tuesday, she set out to reclaim her former life.

Gates Criticizes Conventional Focus At Start of Iraq War

Ann Scott Tyson — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates yesterday criticized the shock-and-awe strategy of the 2003 Iraq invasion and said the Pentagon's narrow focus on conventional combat operations proved costly when U.S. ground troops had to switch gears to try to stabilize that country.

For U.S. and Sunni Allies, a Turning Point

Ernesto Londoño — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD -- First Lt. Justin John, 6-foot-4 and built like a linebacker, plopped down on a sofa in front of Ibrahim Suleiman al-Zoubaidi, one of the leaders of the mainly Sunni armed groups that have helped the U.S. military quell violence in Iraq since last year.

Watching the Big Game, Far From Home

Andrea Bruce — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

Lighted only by the moon, its windows blacked out, a small U.S. outpost in southern Baghdad looks abandoned. Hulking armored vehicles, still hot from a recent mission, rest on imported gravel. Bats flutter and fall like a sudden twitch in the placid night sky.

At Least 27 Dead, Dozens Hurt In Blasts Around Iraqi Capital

Ernesto Londoño and Qais Mizher — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD, Sept. 28 -- At least 27 people were killed Sunday in attacks in crowded commercial areas of Baghdad, Iraqi police officials said.