Britain hails release of Iraq hostage (AFP via Yahoo! Singapore News)
Britain hailed the release of a computer expert in Iraq after an “unspeakable” 31-month ordeal, amid reports Thursday militants were handed over to secure his freedom and that Iran was behind the kidnapping.
Freedom for UK hostage held in Iraq since 2007 (CNN)
Wednesday’s release of a British computer expert held by Shiite Muslim insurgents in Iraq since 2007 came about as part of efforts to settle the six-year-old insurgency, an Iraqi government spokesman said.
Leader of Iraq group behind Briton’s kidnap handed over: US (Zawya)
BAGHDAD, Dec 31, 2009 (AFP) – The leader of the group behind the 2007 kidnap of a British computer expert is to be handed over to Iraqi authorities, a US military spokesman said on Thursday.
IRAQ: NGOs say ready for more responsibility (AlertNet)
Source: IRIN The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in Iraq wants closer ties with local NGOs in 2010, and the head of a leading NGO umbrella group believes more effective aid can be delivered to Iraqi returnees if cooperation between local NGOs and UN bodies is boosted. But there are a number of constraints.
Charges dismissed against Iraq contractors (CNN)
A federal judge dismissed manslaughter charges Thursday against five Blackwater security guards in the 2007 deaths of Iraqi civilians in a Baghad square, finding that prosecutors wrongly used the men’s own statements against them.
Police chief fired after Iraq suicide bombings (Reuters via Yahoo!Xtra News)
RAMADI, Iraq (Reuters) – The police chief of Iraq’s western Anbar province was fired on Thursday and authorities imposed a curfew in its capital Ramadi, after bombings killed 27 people and wounded the provincial governor, police said.
Iraq bomb plotters recruited in US-run prison: police (AFP/File via Yahoo! News)
Two men on death row for masterminding an Al-Qaeda truck bombing that killed 88 people on June 20 were recruited in a US-run prison camp, a senior Iraqi police commander said on Thursday.
Release of British hostage Peter Moore in Iraq garners praise (The Christian Science Monitor)
British hostage Peter Moore was released after 2-1/2 years in captivity in Iraq. He was among the last of 306 foreigners to be abducted since 2003. British officials praised their Iraqi counterparts’ efforts in securing Moore’s release.
US Judge Dismisses All Charges in Blackwater Iraq Killings (CommonDreams.org)
WASHINGTON — A federal judge dismissed all charges Thursday against security contractors from the former Blackwater in connection with the 2007 deaths of 17 Iraqi civilians in a Baghdad square, ruling that prosecutors wrongly used against the men statements that they had given under duress. The September 2007 incident led Iraq’s government to slap limits on security contractors hired by …
Iran linked to 2007 British kidnapping (BigPond News)
A British computer expert kidnapped in Iraq in 2007 were seized in an operation masterminded by Iran.
Ramadi attacks: Is Iraq heading for more sectarian bloodshed? (The Christian Science Monitor)
The two blasts hit government buildings in Ramadi, the provincial capital of Anbar Province, on Wednesday, leaving more than 20 people dead and nearly 60 people injured. Officials blame Al Qaeda in Iraq for the attacks.
Iraq suicide bombing kills 25 (Los Angeles Times)
The governor of Anbar province is among 100 injured in the bombing in Ramadi. The attack brings back memories of violence from 2004 to ’06, when the provincial capital was a wasteland. A suicide bomb attack Wednesday in Anbar province’s capital killed 25 people and wounded 100, including the governor. The attack raised fears that the devastating bloodletting that swept western Iraq several years …
