Northern Oil Hub Falls to U.S., Kurds Iraqi resistance in Kirkuk evaporates, and American forces target regime's last bastions. Lawlessness continues to reign in Baghdad. Nuclear Site Stood Unguarded for Days The lapse points to the larger concern over finding potentially dangerous materials before they land in the hands of terrorists. Scarred by Terror, but Daring to Hope Naji Abbas headed out for a couple of hours one day in 1985 to buy some medicine and never returned. Thirteen months later, family members say, the police told them they could pick up his body at the Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad. Hard-Liners in Iran Worry About U.S. Influence in Iraq They take steps to splinter Iraqi opposition groups based in their country in apparent effort to make sure Tehran will have sway. Mob Kills 2 Leaders at Shiite Shrine Abdul Majid Khoei, who had returned from exile last week, and the custodian of Imam Ali Mosque in Najaf are slain inside mosque. Kurds Bask in the Fall of Kirkuk Exiled by Baath Party, many return to reunite with their families as Iraqi army vanishes from city. Some Arabs fear retribution. Powell Reassures Turkey That Armed Kurds Will Leave Kirkuk Turkish officials voiced alarm Thursday over the Kurdish militia occupation of Kirkuk but accepted an assurance from U.S. Secretary of State Colin L. Powell that a large American military force would reach the Iraqi oil city today and persuade the armed Kurds to leave. Colonel Apologizes for Journalists' Deaths, Defends Actions The Army colonel who ordered his tanks to fire on the Palestine Hotel, killing two journalists, apologized Thursday for the deaths but said he had no choice because his unit was under attack by Iraqis operating there. U.S. on Paper Trail to War Crimes Evidence Officers in Baghdad are scouring documents to build cases against Hussein and his cohorts. Iraqi Collapse Is a Dagger in the Arab Heart People wonder how the regime could crumble so quickly. Concerns now turn to what lies ahead. Checkpoint Pillaged After Iraqi Staff Flees The soldiers stationed at the concrete arches that mark the gateway to Iraq from Jordan disappeared sometime after dusk Thursday, along with customs agents and other government bureaucrats. Skepticism Reigns in Nations Opposed to War Reaction to Baghdad's fall shows that the U.S. still is a long way from winning over public opinion in France, Germany and Russia. Effort to Depict Iraqi Life Is Caught in a Tangled Web Journalist Magda Bandera of Barcelona, Spain, calls herself a „postwar correspondent,“ someone who gives voice to the people left behind after the tanks withdraw and the bombers fly home. U.S. Takes to Airwaves With TV Service in Iraq Now that Iraqi television has gone off the air, the information war is on. Workers Rally for Troops Event at site of World Trade Center is designed to show solidarity for those fighting in Iraq. Terror Suspect Linked to Hamburg Cell Italy arrests Moroccan Mohamed Daki and says evidence shows he had ties to the German Al Qaeda unit that planned Sept. 11 attacks. Israeli Missile Attack Kills Militant Leader A Gaza City helicopter strike targets an Islamic Jihad commander, who is blamed for a string of deadly assaults. Twelve bystanders are injured. N. Ireland Peace Plans Withheld IRA is unclear about its commitment to getting rid of weapons, British and Irish leaders say. U.S. Aid Effort Wins Over Skeptics in Afghanistan The U.S. military is getting grudging praise for its humanitarian aid and nation-building efforts, even from critics who once considered such assistance a dangerous digression from its traditional fighting role. Syria Closed Border With Iraq, U.S. Says The State Department said Thursday that Syria, responding to U.S. pressure, has closed the frontier with Iraq to all traffic in both directions so Iraqis attempting to escape would be turned away. Senate OKs Ban on a War' Diamonds The Senate unanimously approved a bill Thursday to ban the importing of uncut diamonds that help fund African civil wars. Powell Says U.S. Has No List of Nations to Attack Secretary of State Colin L. Powell said Washington did not have a list of nations it plans to attack, as he tried to quell speculation that the United States may move on from Iraq to such nations as Iran and Syria. Home of Hussein's Half Brother Bombed Coalition warplanes bombed an Iraqi intelligence operations site occupied by President Saddam Hussein's half brother, a close advisor who allegedly helped stash millions of dollars abroad for the Iraqi leader, the U.S. Central Command said in Doha, Qatar. Reserves on Antimissile Systems Sent Home In a sign of easing tensions over the war in Iraq, the Israeli army sent home reserve soldiers called up to boost the country's air defense in case of an attack. Out of the 12,000 reserve troops called to operate antimissile systems, 1,000 were still serving in active units, Israeli media reported. An army spokesman refused to confirm the numbers. |  Politician's Assassin Gets 18 Years in Prison The killer of populist Pim Fortuyn was sentenced to 18 years in prison for the country's first political assassination in more than three centuries. Volkert van der Graaf, 33, admitted shooting Fortuyn, 54, nine days before a May election that swept the Pim Fortuyn List party into power. Party member Alfons Lonte called the term „totally inadequate.“ 17th Reactor Shut Down, Raising Power Concerns Tokyo's main power company shut down the last of its 17 nuclear reactors for safety checks, meaning the nation's capital may soon face its first blackouts in nearly two decades. Senior government officials voiced concern over the closures by Tokyo Electric Power Co. Quebec Liberal Plans Transition Government Quebec Liberal Leader Jean Charest, whose party swept the separatist Parti Quebecois from power, said he will soon unveil a transition government as the French-speaking province moves to launch cooperation with the rest of Canada. Iraqis Inch Toward a New Government Rivalries flare at first meeting about a postwar structure. As boycotters protest the U.S. role, parties agree to gather again in 10 days. Misery Follows Refugees Streaming Back to Baghdad Along a gritty highway on the outskirts of Baghdad, in an area of onion sellers and car-parts vendors, the families kept coming Tuesday. Meetings in Hussein Hometown Emphasize Who's in Control A day after taking control, U.S. Marines met with two groups of residents Tuesday to begin planning for a future without this city's most famous personage: Saddam Hussein. U.S. Troops in Mosul Battle Mob U.S. Special Forces troops caught in the middle of a political power grab battled a violent mob with assault rifles and heavy machine guns from the governor's building here Tuesday. Ancient Ur Still Standing as Another Regime Topples The biblical birthplace of Abraham, unscathed by light fighting nearby, is spared the looting and devastation that hit a museum in Baghdad. Weapons By the Barrel The Iraqi army stockpiled vast caches only to abandon them as it fled, leaving the U.S. with a storage problem that's still growing. Fearing Revenge, Hussein's Militia Forces Lie Low and Deny Hurtful Role Not too long ago, members of the black-uniformed militia called Fedayeen Saddam were patrolling the streets of this city, searching for draft dodgers and shooting at U.S. Marines. Dana Jaf was among them. Fighting Force Is Giving Way to Police Force The military, left with little choice because the U.S. is unwilling to cede power quickly, will send more civil affairs units to help maintain order. War Fans Young Arabs' Anger TV images of bloodied civilians and destroyed buildings help fuel anti-U.S. attitude. Secret Contracting Process to Rebuild Iraq Draws Criticism Fighting the war in Iraq turned out to be easier than expected. Getting peace off the ground has proven a bit harder. Marines' Operation Scrubdown Germ warfare experts have retooled their unused gear to provide troops with showers. Arab Israeli Relishes Goodwill Gesture For Passover, Hussein Jaber is the ceremonial keeper of his country's leavened goods. U.S. Refocuses Attention on N. Korea; Talks Planned A high-level meeting could take place within a couple of weeks and involve Asian neighbors. British to Open Base in Afghanistan's Lawless North Signaling its ongoing commitment to this still unstable country, Britain said Tuesday that it will open a small military base in northern Afghanistan this summer in hopes of quelling the sporadic violence buffeting the region. Rioters Stab L.A. Times Reporter In the middle of a riot Tuesday, a group helping a man with a long, deep gash on his forehead asked whether I would photograph them. When I did, about 300 people rushed me, shouting, „American! American!“ 1st Combat Vessel Home From War Nearly 200 flag-waving friends and relatives waited on a pier Tuesday as the attack submarine Boise and its 138 sailors became the first combat boat to return from duty in the Iraq war. Jailed Dissident Gets 25 Additional Years Cuba condemned one of the communist island's jailed dissidents, Oscar Elias Biscet, to 25 additional years in prison, as the last sentences were handed out for 75 dissidents swept up in a recent political crackdown. New Premier, 36, Is Youngest Europe Leader A 36-year-old former auditor took over as prime minister, becoming Europe's youngest leader in a nation where youth has been a political hallmark since the former Soviet republic regained independence.  |
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