POLITICS-US: Rice and Gates Divided over Iran’s Role in Iraq

A State Department official's assertion in late December that Iran had exerted a restraining influence on Iraqi Shiite militia violence signaled a major divergence of views between Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Defence Robert Gates over how to portray Iran's role in Iraq.

CHALLENGES 2007-2008: New Year Begins Unhappily In What Was Home

The end of 2007 produced a telltale indication of what the New Year seems likely to bring to Iraq.

CHALLENGES 2007-2008: Bush’s Twilight Year Looks Grim

If the last days of 2007 are any indication, U.S. President George W. Bush’s last year in office is shaping up as grim and lonely.

CHALLENGES 2007-2008: Iraq Progresses To Some Of Its Worst

Despite all the claims of improvements, 2007 has been the worst year yet in Iraq.

CHALLENGES 2007-2008: Gates Led Realist Resurgence in ‘07

2007 will likely go down in U.S. history as the year in which the balance of power in the long-running struggle between hawks and realists in the administration of President George W. Bush shifted decisively in favour of the latter.

IRAQ: Saddam Provided More Food Than the U.S.

The Iraqi government announcement that monthly food rations will be cut by half has left many Iraqis asking how they can survive.

IRAQ: ‘Awakening’ Forces Arouse New Conflicts

The controversial move of the U.S. military to back Sunni "Awakening" forces has created another wedge between Sunni and Shia political groups.

RIGHTS-US: Congress Takes Action on Cluster Bombs, Child Soldiers

Human-rights and humanitarian groups are hailing provisions of a major appropriations bill approved by Congress this week that bans the export of most U.S.-made cluster bombs and U.S. military aid for foreign governments that use child soldiers.

POLITICS-SAUDI ARABIA: Iran Polls Better Than U.S.

Although the image of the United States appears to have improved in Saudi Arabia over the past year, the Saudi public’s view of Washington remains largely negative, according to major new poll released here this week by Terror Free Tomorrow (TFT), a Washington, D.C.-based bipartisan group.

POLITICS-US: Congress Clears More Funds for Both War and Relief

Racing to adjourn for the year, the U.S. Congress this week approved a 560- billion-dollar omnibus 2008 appropriation that includes 70 billion dollars more for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and sizable increases in development, refugee, and disaster assistance.

MEDIA-US: Gas Prices, Iraq, Disasters Rated as ’07’s Hottest Stories

While the Iraq war remained the most consistently monitored story by U.S. media consumers through most of 2007, the public found the rise in gasoline prices and various natural and man-made disasters more compelling, according to a new survey released here Wednesday by the Pew Research Centre for the People and the Press.

FILM-US/IRAQ: Heart of Darkness

Midland, a small city in the heart of the west Texas oil country, is proud to be known as the childhood home of the U.S. president and commander-in-chief, George W. Bush.

IRAQ: Looking to Security from Paper Police

In a country with no security and no jobs, just about anyone can work as a policeman.

MEDIA: Journalist Deaths Still Climbing Every Year

For journalists across the world, this year has been the deadliest in more than a decade, according to a report released by a major media watchdog Tuesday.

IRAQ: “Bad” Women Raped and Killed

Women are being killed by militia groups in southern Iraq for not conforming to strict Islamic ways, the police say. And, increased threats from militia groups is driving many women away from their homes.

POLITICS-US: Assassination Jars Nascent Detente with Syria

When the George W. Bush administration asked Damascus to attend last month's Annapolis conference, Emad Moustapha, the Syrian ambassador to the United States, admits he was stunned.

IRAQ: Not Even the Hajj is Free of Corruption

Many Iraqis are angry that the government seems to be picking favourites for the Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.

POLITICS: U.S. Jews Tilt Rightwards on Israel

U.S. Jews appear to have become more opposed both to Israel's making key concessions in renewed peace talks with Palestinians and to the U.S. carrying out a military attack against Iran's nuclear facilities, according to the latest in an annual series of surveys of Jewish opinion released here this week by the American Jewish Committee (AJC).

IRAQ: Iran Eases Support to Radical Group – For Now

Iraq's deputy prime minister has credited Tehran with helping curb the activities of a radical Shia Muslim militia, and he is also hoping Iran will do more to help stabilise its western neighbour.

IRAQ: Education Becomes the New Casualty in Baquba

The alarming security situation in Diyala province north of Baghdad has killed off much of the education system.

IRAQ: Refugees Caught Between Deportation and Death Threats

Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis driven out of their country by violence are now faced with detention abroad, or a homecoming to death threats.