Iraq

The self-described whistleblower website, WikiLeaks, will release as many as 400,000 sensitive military documents on the U.S. mission in Iraq as early as next week.

The top tier of Ayad Allawi’s secular Iraqiya slate met with Saudi leadership in Riyadh today, including King Abdullah to discuss Iran’s meddlesome role in Iraq’s domestic affairs.

Maliki’s political endurance hangs on the support of the Kurdish faction.

The New York Times is reporting the Sadrist bloc has made a stunning reversal to support erstwhile opponent and political bugbear, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, for another term at the helm of the Iraqi government. The Sadrists’ 39 seats would prove the critical tipping point for the incumbent premiere.

Last night, President Obama addressed the nation about the end to the U.S. combat mission in Iraq. Packed to the brim with bizarre nautical references, he embarked (pun very much intended) “to give us confidence that our course is true, and that beyond the pre-dawn darkness, better days lie ahead.” Ultimately and unfortunately, his message was as mixed as his metaphors.

While overseeing the departure of American forces in Iraq, Gen. Ray Odierno, warned Sunday that a new Iraqi government may still be months away from formation and said that an extended impasse could create demands for a new election to break the deadlock, which has existed since March 7th. The New York Times published an excellent piece regarding statements made by Odierno yesterday, at headquarters. […]

A run of coordinated attacks that spanned the length of the country killed at least 56 people today in assaults aimed at Iraqi army and police forces, one day after the U.S. announced that its combat troops had fallen below 50,000.

We all know the broad strokes. The state of Iraq has been politically rudderless since March 7 elections for the Council of Representatives failed to produce a clear coalition winner. Although former PM Ayad Allawi’s  Iraqiya slate won a two-seat victory over Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s State of Law coalition, they didn’t score with sufficient […]

Here’s a brief outline of news and views from some of the major news outlets regarding the end of the US combat mission…taken from major media both in the States and abroad.

More than 50 people were killed and some 115 wounded when a suicide bomber struck a Baghdad recruiting center for the Iraqi Army.

A day after President Obama vowed no delays to the drawdown of troops in Iraq, synchronized car bombs killed 33 people and five police officers were murdered in Baghdad. In both cases, the attackers hoisted the black flag of the Islamic State of Iraq — a clear sign that al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) is […]

We’ve hit an emotional milestone in Iraq. The end is in sight. Major combat is over and the troops are coming home. And we can expect many more of these talks, with appearances planned throughout the month by the president, Vice President Biden and other senior administration officials as they wax eloquent on Obama’s steadfast commitment to ending the war.