washingtonpost.com - Middle East

Germany to Guarantee Private Bank Accounts; Markets Plunge

Craig Whitlock, Blaine Harden and Ellen Knickmeyer — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 06:31:01 EDT

BERLIN, Oct. 6 -- Global stock markets plummeted on Monday as European officials scrambled to bolster financial firms and Asian investors worried that a global recession will undercut their export-dependent economies.

Unseen Iraq

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

By Andrea Bruce {vbar} Washington Post Staff Photographer

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.

Tallest Tower Planned in Dubai

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

CAIRO, Oct. 5 -- Defying the world credit crunch, one of the Persian Gulf's leading developers pledged Sunday to keep taking the boom city of Dubai up and up -- announcing plans for a skyscraper that would be the world's tallest, at two-thirds of a mile high.

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.

U.S. to Fund Pro-American Publicity in Iraqi Media

Karen DeYoung and Walter Pincus — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

The Defense Department will pay private U.S. contractors in Iraq up to $300 million over the next three years to produce news stories, entertainment programs and public service advertisements for the Iraqi media in an effort to "engage and inspire" the local population to support U.S. objectives ...

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.

Blast Targeting Lebanese Army Kills 5

Alia Ibrahim — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BEIRUT, Sept. 29 -- A car bomb exploded near a military bus in the northern city of Tripoli on Monday, killing five people, including four soldiers, and injuring more than 30.

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.

U.S. Navy Bolsters Watch Over Ship Seized by Somali Pirates

Ellen Knickmeyer — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

CAIRO, Sept. 29 -- The U.S. Navy on Monday strengthened its force of warships standing watch over a hijacked Ukrainian-operated vessel off Somalia, intent on ensuring that the pirates holding the vessel do not unload its cargo of 33 Soviet-designed T-72 tanks and other arms, a U.S. Navy spokesman...

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.

Young Iranians Release Book Caricaturing The Holocaust

Thomas Erdbrink — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

TEHRAN, Sept. 27 -- Iranian students have released a book containing cartoons of the Holocaust, including some depicting hospitalized Jews on respiratory machines attached to canisters of Zyklon B, the gas used to exterminate Jews during World War II.

Car Bomb In Syrian Capital Kills 17

Ellen Knickmeyer and Alia Ibrahim — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

CAIRO, Sept. 27 -- A car bomb killed 17 people on a busy street in Syria's capital Saturday, in the third deadly political attack this year in the tightly policed Arab country.

In First Debate, Candidates Quarrel On Iraq, Express Optimism for Bailout

Michael D. Shear and Shailagh Murray — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

OXFORD, Miss., Sept. 26 -- Sen. Barack Obama sharply criticized Sen. John McCain's judgment on the war in Iraq, repeatedly telling his presidential rival "you were wrong" to rush the nation into battle, directly challenging the Republican nominee on foreign policy as the two met in their first...

On a Vital Route, a Boom in Piracy

Ellen Knickmeyer — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

ABOARD A YEMENI COAST GUARD VESSEL -- Somali pirates plying the Gulf of Aden in speedboats equipped with grenade launchers and scaling ladders have launched what the maritime industry calls the biggest surge of piracy in modern times, sending shipping costs soaring and the world's navies scrambling...

Security Council Pressed On Iran

Colum Lynch — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 26 -- The United States, Russia, China and key European powers agreed Friday to press for a U.N. Security Council resolution that renews previous demands for Iran to halt its enrichment of uranium but includes no new punitive measures to compel Tehran to do so.

Young Saudis Reinvent Ramadan

Faiza Saleh Ambah — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

JIDDAH, Saudi Arabia -- During Ramadan this year, Faten Jiddawi and a few friends from a charity packed into a hot van and delivered a new washing machine and refrigerator to a needy family.

Turkish Warplanes Target Kurdish Rebel Sites in N. Iraq

Ellen Knickmeyer — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 10:36:59 EDT

CAIRO, Sept. 26 -- Turkish warplanes crossed the border into northern Iraqi airspace to bomb 16 Kurdish rebel sites, a spokesman for Turkey's military said Friday. There were no reports of any deaths in the air attacks, which occurred late Thursday night.

Blast Injures Israeli Academic Critical of Jewish Settlements

Samuel Sockol — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

JERUSALEM, Sept. 25 -- Zeev Sternhell, a leading Israeli political scientist and a frequent critic of Jewish settlement of the West Bank, was lightly wounded early Thursday when a pipe bomb exploded outside his home in Jerusalem.

Air Force Instructor Details Harsh Interrogations

Joby Warrick — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

The techniques themselves -- forced nudity, sleep deprivation, painful shackling -- had been used for years to prepare U.S. fighter pilots for possible capture by an enemy. But Col. Steven Kleinman, an Air Force instructor, said he was shocked in 2003 to see the same harsh methods used haphazardly...

U.S. Has Achieved 'Victory' in Iraq, Palin Tells Couric

Howard Kurtz — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, describing the need for more troops in Afghanistan, said the United States has achieved "victory" in Iraq.

Yemen Rejects Some U.S. Requests on Extremists

Ellen Knickmeyer — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 10:22:58 EDT

SANAA, Yemen -- A growing number of attacks attributed to Islamist fighters, including last week's assault on the U.S. Embassy here, appear to have ended Yemen's immunity from such violence, but the country's leaders say they have no intention of adopting some of the tougher security measures U.S....

Iraqi Red Crescent Paralyzed by Allegations

Amit R. Paley and Ernesto Londoño — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD -- The Iraqi Red Crescent, the country's leading humanitarian organization, has been crippled by allegations of embezzlement and mismanagement, including what Iraqi officials call the inappropriate expenditure of more than $1 million on Washington lobbying firms in an unsuccessful effort to...

House Passes Spending Bill

Lyndsey Layton and Walter Pincus — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

The House overwhelmingly approved a resolution yesterday to continue funding the federal government until March 6, a stopgap measure needed to avert a government shutdown because Congress has not approved the 12 appropriations bills pending on Capitol Hill.

Yemen Rejects Some U.S. Requests on Extremists

Ellen Knickmeyer — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

Parliament Approves Elections Law in Iraq

Sudarsan Raghavan — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

BAGHDAD, Sept. 24 -- Iraq's parliament passed a provincial elections law Wednesday that paves the way for balloting in most parts of the country by Jan. 31 and that could help bolster efforts at national reconciliation.

In U.N. Speech, Bush Focuses on Terrorism

Michael Abramowitz and Colum Lynch — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 23 -- On a day when other world leaders largely focused on the global economic crisis, President Bush sought to turn the attention of the United Nations to his core foreign policy goals of fighting terrorists and promoting freedom around the world.

Concern in Lebanon After Syria Bolsters Border Force

Alia Ibrahim — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

ABBOUDIEH, Lebanon, Sept. 23 -- Syria has reinforced its military presence along its border with northern Lebanon, raising political concerns in Beirut despite assurances from Lebanon's military that the extra troops are in place only to counter smuggling between the two countries.

A Bumpy Engagement With the U.N.

Michael Abramowitz and Colum Lynch — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 22 -- Almost every September since he has been president, George W. Bush has made a pilgrimage here to speak to the General Assembly. On one of those occasions, Bush forecast the tepid reaction he knew he would receive, telling then-U.N. Ambassador John R. Bolton: "Well, it's...

Dissident Lobbies for Conditions on U.S. Aid to Egypt

Nora Boustany — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

Egypt's most prominent exiled dissident is prodding American legislators to use their leverage over U.S. aid to Egypt to force the Cairo government to foster greater political and media freedoms and a more independent judiciary.

$13 Billion in Iraq Aid Wasted Or Stolen, Ex-Investigator Says

Dana Hedgpeth — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

A former Iraqi official estimated yesterday that more than $13 billion meant for reconstruction projects in Iraq was wasted or stolen through elaborate fraud schemes.