Month: January 2020

The future of the US military presence in Iraq is in question amid scenes of confusion in Washington, as the Trump administration scrambled to respond to Iraqi demands for the troops to leave after last week’s assassination in Baghdad of Iran’s top general, Qassem Suleimani. The US-led coalition taskforce fighting Isis in Iraq delivered a…

Washington — Secretary of Defense Mark Esper warned Thursday there are indications Iranian-backed Shiite militias in Iraq are planning additional attacks in the wake of violent demonstrations at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad this week. “Do I think they may do something? Yes,” Esper told reporters at the Pentagon. “And they will likely regret it.…

By David Shepardson and Allison Lampert WASHINGTON/MONTREAL (Reuters) – Major airlines canceled Iran and Iraq flights on Wednesday and re-routed others away from both countries’ airspace, following an Iranian missile strike on United States-led forces in Iraq. Germany’s Lufthansa, Dubai-based Emirates and low-cost flydubai were among airlines that canceled flights, as the U.S. Federal Aviation…

Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images Passengers flying between the UK and India were delayed for more than 36 hours over the weekend, with airline TUI blaming “airspace restrictions” in the Middle East for the travel nightmare. Tensions have flared in the region since the US assassinated Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in Iraq last week, prompting…

Secretary of Defense Mark Esper disputed a U.S. military letter announcing that troops would be repositioned within Iraq in advance of a potential pullout. Esper claimed he didn’t know where the letter came from and that it was “inconsistent with where we are right now.” There has been “no decision whatsoever to leave Iraq,” Esper…

At least one person has been killed in Puerto Rico and power is out across the island after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck off the southern coast early Tuesday morning, according to the Associated Press. The 6.4 magnitude quake follows a 5.8 magnitude earthquake that struck nearby on Monday, resulting in the collapse of Punta…

Tehran (AFP) – A magnitude 4.5 earthquake on Wednesday rattled an area less than 50 kilometres (30 miles) from Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant near the country’s Gulf coast, a US monitor said. The quake, which had a depth of 10 kilometres, struck 17 kilometres south-southeast of Borazjan city at 6:49 am (0319 GMT), the…

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The U.S. strike that killed Iran’s top military commander may have had an indirect casualty: a diplomatic solution to denuclearizing North Korea. Experts say the escalation of tensions between Washington and Tehran will diminish already fading hopes for such an outcome and inspire North Korea’s decision-makers to tighten their hold…

By Sangmi Cha and Josh Smith SEOUL (Reuters) – There is a “desperate need” for practical ways to improve ties with North Korea, the South’s President Moon Jae-in said on Tuesday, adding that he was ready to meet with the reclusive leader in Pyongyang repeatedly if necessary. Moon, sidelined from his leading role in the…

(This Jan. 7 story corrects headline and paragraph 1 to say Lincoln Memorial, not Washington Memorial) By Keith Coffman DENVER (Reuters) – CNN has settled with a Kentucky teenager who sued the network for defamation over its coverage of his encounter with a Native American at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington a year ago. The…