Free Republic

Baghdad, Iraq (CNN)Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi escaped an assassination attempt on Sunday after an explosive-laden drone targeted his residence, the country's military said. Al-Kadhimi went on to Twitter moments after the attack and called for "calm and restraint from everyone.".. ..A source close to the Iraqi leader said Sunday that Al-Kadhimi was returning from overseeing security forces engaged in a stand-off with protesters at the southern gate of the Green Zone, the heavily fortified area of Baghdad where the the Prime Minister's residence and other government and diplomatic buildings are located, around the time of the drone attack. As...

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi addresses the nation following a drone strike that targeted his residence in Baghdad on November 7. Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi addresses the nation following a drone strike that targeted his residence in Baghdad on November 7. Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi survived an attack by an armed drone on his residence on November 7 amid escalating tensions over the refusal of Iran-backed militias to accept last month's parliamentary election results. The Baghdad residence inside the city's fortified Green Zone was hit by a rocket attack early on November 7, the prime minister’s office said...

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq said on Monday it has detained a top leader of the Islamic State group and a longtime al-Qaida operative in a cross-border operation. Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi tweeted the news, identifying the man as Sami Jassem, who oversees the Islamic State group’s financial operations and served as the deputy leader of IS under the late Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. He described it as “one of the most difficult” cross border intelligence operations ever conducted by Iraqi forces. Iraqi intelligence officials told The Associated Press that Jassem was detained in an identified foreign country and transported to...

A restaruant where customers can sit down has been open for business in Kendrick, Idaho since May 1st in violation of the coronavirus martial law house arrest order of Republican Governor Brad Little. Now the Hardware Brewing Company being threatened with an alcohol license suspension by the Idaho State Police..... Anti-house arrest lockdown protests in several German cities today Munich, Frankfurt and Cologne..... An incident being called "fatal" involving an Iranian logistics ship near the port of Jask with unofficial reports calling it a "friendly fire" incident..... Al Qaeda affiliated jihadists in northwestern Syria launched a surprise attack on government...

Iraq’s new prime minister has promoted a general who played a major role in crushing ISIS and who is also widely seen as a counterweight to Iranian influence. Lt. Gen. Abdul Wahab al-Saadi has been named commander of Iraq’s Counter-Terrorism Service, which took heavy casualties during the fight for Mosul, according to the Associated Press. Al-Saadi previously served as deputy commander for the counterterrorism force, which was trained and equipped by the U.S. military. The Counter-Terrorism Service is considered the best disciplined and least sectarian element of Iraq’s military and police force. As such, it is a bulwark against Iran,...

When U.S. missiles killed Iran’s most important general and its most important militia leader in early January as they were visiting Baghdad, it looked like American forces would be kicked out of Iraq... More than four months later, not only are U.S. forces still there, but it’s clear that the killings have created space for a new Iraqi government to assert some independence from its powerful neighbor. The signs of this new approach have been building over recent months, and the ascendance last week of Mustafa Al-Kadhimi to the post of transitional prime minister is the latest and most profound......

The US Justice Department moving to drop the criminal charges against former National Security Adviser General Michael Flynn who was prosecuted in connection with the Robert Mueller investigation into alleged "Russian collusion" with President Trump's campaign in 2016. The Justice Department is asking that the charges be dismissed "with prejudice" meaning they cannot be refiled in the future...... The US Supreme Court has overturned the conviction of a former aide to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie convicted in 2016 of fraud...... Oregon's Governor Kate Brown is talking about a regulated re-opening of Oregon business starting May 15th with new "rules"...