Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Iraq crisis: U.S. moves firepower to region as ISIS advance continues

By Laura Smith-Spark and Nic Robertson, CNN
updated 9:28 AM EDT, Tue June 17, 2014
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Baghdad, Iraq (CNN) -- As Islamic militants continue their murderous advance in Iraq, the Pentagon is moving more firepower and manpower into the region to prepare for whatever U.S. President Barack Obama orders.
Already at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, dozens of Marines and Army troops have moved in to beef up security. Another 100 personnel are in the region to provide support if needed, the Pentagon said.
The aircraft carrier George H.W. Bush and five other warships are now in the Persian Gulf. More than 500 Marines and dozens of helicopters are on standby.
A top priority: evacuate all Americans at the embassy if it comes to that.
U.S. embassy on alert in Iraq
Kerry: U.S. could partner with Iran
Obama to send 275 U.S. troops to Iraq
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On Monday, Secretary of State John Kerry, in an interview with Yahoo! News, acknowledged that airstrikes on Iraqi targets are under consideration.
"Well, they are not the whole answer, but they may well be one of the options that are important to be able to stem the tide and stop the movement of people who are moving around in open convoys and trucks and terrorizing people," he said.
"When you have people murdering, assassinating in these mass massacres, you have to stop that and you do what you need to do."
Meanwhile, the violence continued unabated -- and edged closer to the country's capital.
ISIS fighters advanced Tuesday to the city of Baquba, only about 37 miles (60 kilometers) north of Baghdad, where they clashed with Iraqi government forces, eyewitnesses in the city told CNN. ISIS militants stormed the police station there, took control and looted all the weapons before withdrawing.
Government forces have retained control of a number of neighborhoods in Baquba, Iraqi state TV reported. Citing Iraqi military spokesman Qasim Atta, the network reported that Iraqi security forces had killed nine militants near the police station and that ISIS had killed 52 people held in the local jail by throwing hand grenades inside.
Kurdish security sources also reported fighting around Saadiya, about 55 miles (89 kilometers) north of Baghdad, as Kurdish fighters, known as Peshmerga, seek to retake control from ISIS militants there. The two sides are also battling for control of Bashir village, southwest of Kirkuk city, as terrified civilians flee shelling by ISIS.
An unpalatable option
Among the options considered by the United States may be the politically unpalatable one of cooperating with Iran to stop militant gains.
While Kerry didn't say that cooperation with Iran is under active discussion, he wouldn't "rule out anything that would be constructive to providing real stability."
"I think we are open to any constructive process here that could minimize the violence, hold Iraq together -- the integrity of the country -- and eliminate the presence of outside terrorist forces that are ripping it apart," Kerry said.
His comments are the first time such a high-ranking U.S. official has made such a public statement since ISIS militants began an offensive that has seen vast swaths of northern Iraq fall out of government hands.
Iran plays a key role. It's an ally of Iraq's Shiite-led government. The ISIS militants are Sunni.
ISIS photos seem to show mass execution
Photos: Iraq under siege Photos: Iraq under siege
Map: Unrest in IraqMap: Unrest in Iraq
General: Don't make deal with the devil
A senior security official in Baghdad told CNN last week that the country had sent about 500 Revolutionary Guard troops to help fight the ISIS militants. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani denied the report over the weekend, but said he would be open to helping if asked.
Given the forces at play, direct talks with Iranian officials are something some analysts favor.
"If we engage in a military action without a political solution, we will be seen as backing Maliki in a Sunni-Shia civil war. And that is exactly the opposite of what we want to do," said Col. Peter Mansoor, retired.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's media adviser, Ali al Mosawi, told CNN on Tuesday that the Premier's meeting with the U.S. ambassador to Iraq had been "productive" and that the two nations were coordinating to combat the terrorist threat.
The government hopes "there will be more cooperation from the American side to combat terrorism," Mosawi said. "There is cooperation, but we are looking for more support."
At the same time, a statement from al-Maliki's office accused the Saudi government of appeasing terrorists and providing radical groups with material and moral support.
"The Saudi government must bear responsibility of the serious crimes committed by these groups," the statement read.
TVC NEWS [NEW YORK]- The UN Special Envoy for Global Education, Gordon Brown, on Monday urged the world to remember the kidnapped schoolgirls of Chibok, Borno.
TVC NEWS recalls that Boko Haram militants abducted more than 200 girls from their school in Chibok, on April 14.
Brown, in a message to mark the Day of the African Child at the UN in New York, also praised the youth around the world as they mobilised to demand education for all.
The theme for this year is: “A child friendly, quality, free and compulsory education for all children in Africa.”
“Thousands of people have come together united with one cause, Safe schools for every girl and boy.
“While the global community has failed to deliver safe schooling, young people are demanding safe, quality schools for all children everywhere, and they are standing in solidarity with the northern Nigerian girls of Chibok, and all those around the world who face these struggles.”
The UN has repeatedly called for concerted efforts to tackle the insurgency in North-East, and reiterated its support for ongoing efforts by the Nigerian government to secure the schoolgirls’ safe release.
The Day of the African Child is marked on June 16 every year to honour the memory of school children killed in 1976 during a demonstration in Soweto, South Africa.
They were protesting inferior education by the apartheid administration and demanding lessons in their own language.
The African Union (AU) designated the Day in 1991, encouraging events to be organised around the world promoting children’s rights.
In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where the AU is headquartered, an assembly of young people also converged on Monday at the organisation to deliver a call of action about education to world leaders.(NAN)
- See more at: http://www.tvcnews.tv/?q=article/un-calls-focus-abducted-chibok-girls#sthash.4lWeZKz7.dpuf
TVC NEWS [NEW YORK]- The UN Special Envoy for Global Education, Gordon Brown, on Monday urged the world to remember the kidnapped schoolgirls of Chibok, Borno.
TVC NEWS recalls that Boko Haram militants abducted more than 200 girls from their school in Chibok, on April 14.
Brown, in a message to mark the Day of the African Child at the UN in New York, also praised the youth around the world as they mobilised to demand education for all.
The theme for this year is: “A child friendly, quality, free and compulsory education for all children in Africa.”
“Thousands of people have come together united with one cause, Safe schools for every girl and boy.
“While the global community has failed to deliver safe schooling, young people are demanding safe, quality schools for all children everywhere, and they are standing in solidarity with the northern Nigerian girls of Chibok, and all those around the world who face these struggles.”
The UN has repeatedly called for concerted efforts to tackle the insurgency in North-East, and reiterated its support for ongoing efforts by the Nigerian government to secure the schoolgirls’ safe release.
The Day of the African Child is marked on June 16 every year to honour the memory of school children killed in 1976 during a demonstration in Soweto, South Africa.
They were protesting inferior education by the apartheid administration and demanding lessons in their own language.
The African Union (AU) designated the Day in 1991, encouraging events to be organised around the world promoting children’s rights.
In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where the AU is headquartered, an assembly of young people also converged on Monday at the organisation to deliver a call of action about education to world leaders.(NAN)
- See more at: http://www.tvcnews.tv/?q=article/un-calls-focus-abducted-chibok-girls#sthash.4lWeZKz7.dpuf
TVC NEWS [NEW YORK]- The UN Special Envoy for Global Education, Gordon Brown, on Monday urged the world to remember the kidnapped schoolgirls of Chibok, Borno.
TVC NEWS recalls that Boko Haram militants abducted more than 200 girls from their school in Chibok, on April 14.
Brown, in a message to mark the Day of the African Child at the UN in New York, also praised the youth around the world as they mobilised to demand education for all.
The theme for this year is: “A child friendly, quality, free and compulsory education for all children in Africa.”
“Thousands of people have come together united with one cause, Safe schools for every girl and boy.
“While the global community has failed to deliver safe schooling, young people are demanding safe, quality schools for all children everywhere, and they are standing in solidarity with the northern Nigerian girls of Chibok, and all those around the world who face these struggles.”
The UN has repeatedly called for concerted efforts to tackle the insurgency in North-East, and reiterated its support for ongoing efforts by the Nigerian government to secure the schoolgirls’ safe release.
The Day of the African Child is marked on June 16 every year to honour the memory of school children killed in 1976 during a demonstration in Soweto, South Africa.
They were protesting inferior education by the apartheid administration and demanding lessons in their own language.
The African Union (AU) designated the Day in 1991, encouraging events to be organised around the world promoting children’s rights.
In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where the AU is headquartered, an assembly of young people also converged on Monday at the organisation to deliver a call of action about education to world leaders.(NAN)
- See more at: http://www.tvcnews.tv/?q=article/un-calls-focus-abducted-chibok-girls#sthash.4lWeZKz7.dpuf
TVC NEWS [NEW YORK]- The UN Special Envoy for Global Education, Gordon Brown, on Monday urged the world to remember the kidnapped schoolgirls of Chibok, Borno.
TVC NEWS recalls that Boko Haram militants abducted more than 200 girls from their school in Chibok, on April 14.
Brown, in a message to mark the Day of the African Child at the UN in New York, also praised the youth around the world as they mobilised to demand education for all.
The theme for this year is: “A child friendly, quality, free and compulsory education for all children in Africa.”
“Thousands of people have come together united with one cause, Safe schools for every girl and boy.
“While the global community has failed to deliver safe schooling, young people are demanding safe, quality schools for all children everywhere, and they are standing in solidarity with the northern Nigerian girls of Chibok, and all those around the world who face these struggles.”
The UN has repeatedly called for concerted efforts to tackle the insurgency in North-East, and reiterated its support for ongoing efforts by the Nigerian government to secure the schoolgirls’ safe release.
The Day of the African Child is marked on June 16 every year to honour the memory of school children killed in 1976 during a demonstration in Soweto, South Africa.
They were protesting inferior education by the apartheid administration and demanding lessons in their own language.
The African Union (AU) designated the Day in 1991, encouraging events to be organised around the world promoting children’s rights.
In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where the AU is headquartered, an assembly of young people also converged on Monday at the organisation to deliver a call of action about education to world leaders.(NAN)
- See more at: http://www.tvcnews.tv/?q=article/un-calls-focus-abducted-chibok-girls#sthash.4lWeZKz7.dpuf
TVC NEWS [NEW YORK]- The UN Special Envoy for Global Education, Gordon Brown, on Monday urged the world to remember the kidnapped schoolgirls of Chibok, Borno.
TVC NEWS recalls that Boko Haram militants abducted more than 200 girls from their school in Chibok, on April 14.
Brown, in a message to mark the Day of the African Child at the UN in New York, also praised the youth around the world as they mobilised to demand education for all.
The theme for this year is: “A child friendly, quality, free and compulsory education for all children in Africa.”
“Thousands of people have come together united with one cause, Safe schools for every girl and boy.
“While the global community has failed to deliver safe schooling, young people are demanding safe, quality schools for all children everywhere, and they are standing in solidarity with the northern Nigerian girls of Chibok, and all those around the world who face these struggles.”
The UN has repeatedly called for concerted efforts to tackle the insurgency in North-East, and reiterated its support for ongoing efforts by the Nigerian government to secure the schoolgirls’ safe release.
The Day of the African Child is marked on June 16 every year to honour the memory of school children killed in 1976 during a demonstration in Soweto, South Africa.
They were protesting inferior education by the apartheid administration and demanding lessons in their own language.
The African Union (AU) designated the Day in 1991, encouraging events to be organised around the world promoting children’s rights.
In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where the AU is headquartered, an assembly of young people also converged on Monday at the organisation to deliver a call of action about education to world leaders.(NAN)
- See more at: http://www.tvcnews.tv/?q=article/un-calls-focus-abducted-chibok-girls#sthash.4lWeZKz7.dpuf

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