Iraq
Saddam’s Brethren Get Organized
AL-HAWIJAH, Iraq—A decade after U.S.-led forces overthrew Saddam Hussein’s regime, some of his associates and followers have banded together with other Sunni groups to launch the most substantial bid for Sunni power since the strongman’s downfall. Radicals such as Saad Sami al-Obeidi want to bring an end to the political system established in the years . . .
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Iraqi Tribes in Bind Over Syria Arms
Locals Sympathize With Anti-Assad Fighters but Fear Weapons Trade Will Reinvigorate al Qaeda RABIAH, Iraq—Many Iraqis in the tribal region that runs through this border town share family ties, tribal bonds and sympathies with opposition fighters just over the border in Syria. But their leaders worry that an expanding cross-border arms trade here is re-energizing . . .
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An ‘Arab Winter’ Chills Christians
ARTELLA, Iraq—The plight of Iraqi Christians since the fall of Saddam Hussein has been agonizingly personal for Aram Butrus Matti. Hanging on the wall in his parents’ home here in northern Iraq are photographs of his cousin Yonan, his cousin’s spouse and their three-month-old son, who were among some 50 worshippers killed by suicide bombers . . .
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Turf Battle Forms Over Hussein’s Palaces
CAMP VICTORY, Iraq—A quarrel is brewing among Iraqi officials over who gets to decide what to do with the sprawling complex of grandiose former palaces of Saddam Hussein that has served for years as Camp Victory, the headquarters of the U.S. military in Iraq. The compound, encircled by 27 miles of blast walls, is expected . . .
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Iraqis Face Uncertain Future as U.S. Ends Combat Mission
BAGHDAD—Sheikh Fawzi Abdullah, imam of a Sunni mosque in the capital city’s Amil section, looks with relief on the uneasy peace that has settled over his neighborhood. Once-shuttered markets are bustling. Iraqi security forces control the enclave’s streets. Displaced families have returned home to rebuild their lives.
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Prospects Abound Among the Kurds
ERBIL, Iraq — Shortly after leaving his job last year as the United States ambassador to the United Nations, Zalmay Khalilzad started negotiations with Iraqi Kurdish leaders to become a paid adviser. His stint as adviser to the semiautonomous Kurdistan region’s board of investment lasted about seven months. In May Mr. Khalilzad, who also served . . .
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Smugglers in Iraq Blunt Sanctions Against Iran
PENJWIN, Iraq — Even as the United States imposes new sanctions on Iran, one of the biggest gaps in the American strategy is on full display here in Iraq, where hundreds of millions of dollars in crude oil and refined products are smuggled over the scenic mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan every year. Day after day, . . .
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Female Iraqis Take on Tradition in Wrestling Ring
DIWANIYA, Iraq — It doesn’t happen much in the Arab world, but a coach here decided in January to start an all-female wrestling team, the first ever in Iraq. The wrestlers love it and already dream of competing in the Olympics. But there are many in this town south of Baghdad, which like much of . . .
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In Hard-Bitten Baghdad, Tough Tactics on Strays
BAGHDAD — While human beings in Iraq were killing each other in huge numbers, they ignored the dogs, which in turn multiplied at an alarming rate. Now stray dogs are such a menace that municipal workers are hunting them down, slaughtering some 10,000 in Baghdad just since December. This is not exactly good news, but . . .
Read MoreIraqi women on the edges of power
BAGHDAD — Amal Kibash, a candidate for the Baghdad provincial council, is running a bold and even feverish campaign by most standards. With elections coming Saturday, Kibash never wastes a chance to reel in another voter. “You are going to vote for me, right?” she quizzed passers-by with a smile while strolling recently through her . . .
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