Iraq

World News

What's At Stake In The Iraqi Battle For Tikrit?

12:19pm March 03, 2015

The battle to retake Tikrit could say a lot about what happens next in the region. Renee Montagne talks to Vali Nasr, dean of the School for Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.

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Members of Iraqi security forces drive toward an area south of Tikrit, Iraq, over the weekend. An Iraqi force has launched a military offensive, hoping to push ISIS out of Tikrit.

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Iraq Launches Effort To Retake Tikrit From ISIS Fighters

4:43pm March 02, 2015

by Bill Chappell

An Iraqi force has begun a large-scale operation to recapture the city, according to state TV. Tikrit, the hometown of Saddam Hussein, lies between Baghdad and Mosul.

ISIS Video Shows Extremists Smashing Priceless Artifacts

1:41pm March 02, 2015

by Alice Fordham

Bearded men wielding sledgehammers are seen shattering ancient statues and friezes in the Iraqi city of Mosul. One of the militants says God commanded them to remove the idols and statues.

A man looks at ancient Assyrian human-headed winged bull statues at the Iraqi National Museum in Baghdad on Saturday.

Iraq's National Museum To Open For First Time Since 2003 Invasion

2:14pm February 28, 2015

by Scott Neuman

The planned reopening was moved up following the release of a video showing self-declared Islamic State extremists destroying priceless ancient artifacts in the Mosul museum.

Then-U.S. ambassador to Iraq Christopher Hill (right) tours the Mosul Museum of History in May 2009. This week the self-declared Islamic State posted a video online that showed militants going through the museum, pushing over statues and smashing artifact

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Remembering The Relics And Rich History Of Mosul, Before ISIS

2:03pm February 28, 2015

by Alice Fordham

When NPR's Alice Fordham visited Mosul in 2010, bird droppings and rain were the biggest threats to its archaeological sites. Now ISIS has destroyed artifacts that had endured for millennia.

Construction workers at the Erbil Citadel, which was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site last year.

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After 6,000 Years, Time For A Renovation At Iraq's Citadel

10:40am February 28, 2015

by Ari Shapiro

The Citadel, at the heart of the Kurdish city of Erbil, has been inhabited for six millennia. Now, amid war and destruction, it's undergoing a much-needed restoration and upgrade of city services.

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ISIS's 'Jihadi John' Revealed As Londoner Born In Kuwait

8:47am February 27, 2015

NPR's Kelly McEvers speaks with Washington Post contributor Souad Mekhennet. The Post broke the news about the identity of "Jihadi John,

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ISIS Video Shows Extremists Destroying Artifacts

7:42am February 27, 2015

A video has surfaced that appears to show members of the self-proclaimed Islamic State, also known as ISIS, smashing priceless antiques at a museum in Mosul, Iraq.

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Kurdish Peshmerga fighters take positions on the outskirts of Mosul on Jan. 26. The U.S. military says an offensive to drive the Islamic State out of Mosul is expected around April or May.

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Iraqi Kurds: We're Ready To Fight For Mosul

7:27pm February 24, 2015

by Ari Shapiro

The Kurdish security chief says his Peshmerga fighters have gained ground against ISIS. But the big prize in northern Iraq is Mosul, and he says the Iraqi army will be needed for that battle.

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Saudi Arabia's Prince Turki al-Faisal, shown in 2013 in Bahrain, says the 'pinpricks' against the Islamic State have not been effective. The former intelligence chief also says the campaign needs to be better coordinated.

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Saudis Grow Increasingly Critical Of The Campaign Against ISIS

7:18pm February 24, 2015

by Deborah Amos

Prince Turki al-Faisal, the ex-Saudi intelligence chief, says the "pinprick" attacks against the Islamic State are not proving effective. He also says the campaign needs to be better coordinated.

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