Iraq : 1,700 Killed In Mass Executions Of Civilians and Soldiers in Mosul, Say UN:
A UN spokesman says the number of killings could run into the hundreds. Unconfirmed reports say 1,700 Shia soldiers have been executed. "We've also had reports suggesting that the government forces have also committed excesses, in particular the shelling of civilian areas.
Voices from Mosul under ISIS control:
The first images from the Iraqi city of Mosul after its seizure by Islamist militants showed deserted streets, vehicles ablaze and discarded uniforms left by fleeing government troops.
10 Iraqi soldiers killed in attack in Baghdad's north:
The army troops killed in attack suspected to have been carried out by militant group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
Iraq forces battle militants near Baghdad:
Diyala province is the latest battleground for Iraqi forces and militants, who are growing closer to Baghdad.
Senior Shiite cleric calls on Iraqis to take up arms:
Iraq's most senior Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, has urged his followers to take up arms to defend themselves against a relentless advance by Sunni militants, in a sharp escalation of a conflict that is threatening civil war and the potential break-up of the country.
Shiites rally in Iraq as top cleric issues call to arms; Iranian said in charge in Baghdad:
Thousands of Iraqi Shiite Muslims, heeding the calls of their religious leaders, flooded Friday into Baghdad and other Shiite cities to defend their holy sites from an encroaching offensive of rebellious Sunni Muslims led by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
Iran sends elite troops to aid Iraq against insurgents:
Tehran reportedly deploys special forces to help train, plan strategy as Baghdad loses further ground to Jihadists
Iran Strongly Rejects Deploying Troops in Iraq:
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian categorically rejected a Wall Street Journal report alleging that the country has dispatched military forces to Iraq to fight against the Al-Qaeda-backed militants in there.
Mosul Seized: Jihadis Loot $429m from City's Central Bank to Make Isis World's Richest Terror Force:
The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Shams (Isis) has become the richest terror group ever after looting 500 billion Iraqi dinars - the equivalent of $429m (�256m) - from Mosul's central bank, according to the regional governor.
Iraqis Who Fled Mosul Say They Prefer Militants to Government:
That many Sunnis would prefer to take their chances under a militant group so violent it was thrown out of Al Qaeda sharply illustrates how difficult it will be for the Iraqi government to reassert control.
Video shows hundreds of Iraqis walking being captured by ISIL militants Tikrit, Iraq:
Video -
Americans being evacuated from Iraqi air base:
Officials say three planeloads of Americans are being evacuated from a major Iraqi air base in Sunni territory north of Baghdad to escape potential threats from a fast-moving insurgency.
Hang this war criminal!
Tony Blair insists it was 'right to remove Saddam':
Former prime minister Tony Blair says the decision to go to war in Iraq "will remain very difficult and very controversial" but believes it was right to remove Saddam Hussein.
We anti-war protesters were right: the Iraq invasion has led to bloody chaos: Op-Ed:
The horrific fallout from the war was inevitable, and continues today. This calamity must never be allowed to happen again
Iraqi security forces withdraw from Syrian border:
Also in the province, Sunni militants swept a major military base of the al-Mazraa just west of the militant-seized city of Fallujah, some 50 km west of Baghdad, after the army soldiers withdrew suddenly overnight toward Baghdad, the official said.
Assad says West shifting position on Syria:
Syrian president says states that backed revolt are now more concerned about danger posed to them by returning fighters.
Syrian insurgents pause and reinforce from Iraq:
The Syria branch of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has put fighting on hold in Syria while it brings in weapons seized inside neighboring Iraq, a monitoring group that tracks the violence said yesterday.
Yemeni attack kills 4 "suspected" al-Qaeda militants -state news agency:
Yemeni forces bombed and killed four suspected al-Qaeda militants in the country's restive South, military sources told the state news agency Saba on Friday.
Tape emerges purporting to show Erekat lashing out at Abbas:
An audio recording has surfaced in which Mahmoud Abbas' top aide is heard saying the Palestinian leader isn't tough in dealing with Israel and has let himself be humiliated.
More than half of Palestinians oppose new talks with Israel, poll finds:
Survey by Palestinian Center for Public Opinion also finds that 59% of respondents believe Hamas-Fatah unity will last this time.
Egypt cop killed during anti-coup protest:
A policeman was killed in one of several small anti-coup protests that erupted across Egypt on Friday, days after former army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who toppled Islamist president Mohammed Morsi after demonstrations, was sworn in as president.
The looting of Libya:
Petrol shortage irks Libya motorists:
Angry motorists in Libya's capital Tripoli queued to fill up yesterday, some having slept in their cars for nights as petrol stations awaited promised supplies from a state oil firm.
Ukrainian troops regain port city of Mariupol:
Special forces involved in dawn operation that left at least five pro-Russian rebels and two soldiers dead
Ukrainian PM orders govt: 'Prepare to stop Russian gas imports':
Moscow set Monday as a deadline for Ukraine to pay off part of its gas debt of $1.95 billion.
Russian Bombers Buzz California:
Two long-range Russian bombers flew within 50 miles of the northern California coast Monday, but stayed out of U.S. airspace, a defense official said today.
CIA rendition jet was waiting in Europe to SNATCH SNOWDEN:
A secret US government jet - previously employed in CIA "rendition" flights on which terror suspects disappeared into invisible "black" imprisonment - flew into Europe in a bid to spirit him back to America,
'Grant Snowden French asylum' petition gets 150,000 signatures:
Over 150,000 French people have supported a petition urging President Francois Hollande to grant NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden asylum in France after his refugee status expires in Russia in July.
Hero returns:
Freed US soldier Bergdahl arrives in US:
Bowe Bergdahl, held by the Taliban since 2009, reaches Texas, as letters shed light on his mental state before capture.
