Latest Gulf War Stories

By Hiba MoussaBAGHDAD - For students at Baghdad University, one question dominates. Should they stay and try to build lives and careers amidst the chaos and violence in Iraq, or abandon the country for opportunities abroad?Thousands of Iraqis fed up with two years of fighting are wondering the same thing."I should definitely leave as soon as I graduate," said Hayder Mohammed, a 22-year-old English student, standing chatting in the corridor before a lecture on 19th century English...

By Ahmed Rasheed BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Once a bitter enemy, Iran is emerging as a trade lifeline for Iraq as Baghdad seeks to rebuild an economy shattered by years of sanctions, neglect and corruption under Saddam Hussein and since his overthrow. As Iraq picks up the pieces, it is becoming a key market for its neighbours, especially Iran which it fought from 1980-88. Many Iraqi business people say it is easier to get goods like vegetables from Iran than from some parts of Iraq itself,...

By Ahmed Rasheed BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Once a bitter enemy, Iran is emerging as a trade lifeline for Iraq as Baghdad seeks to rebuild an economy shattered by years of sanctions, neglect and corruption under Saddam Hussein and since his overthrow. As Iraq picks up the pieces, it is becoming a key market for its neighbours, especially Iran which it fought from 1980-88. Many Iraqi business people say it is easier to get goods like vegetables from Iran than from some parts of Iraq itself,...

By Ahmed Rasheed BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Once a bitter enemy, Iran is emerging as a trade lifeline for Iraq as Baghdad seeks to rebuild an economy shattered by years of sanctions, neglect and corruption under Saddam Hussein and since his overthrow. As Iraq picks up the pieces, it is becoming as a key market for its neighbors, especially Iran which it fought from 1980-88. Many Iraqi business people say it is easier to get goods like vegetables from Iran, than from areas within Iraq itself,...

By Vicki AllenWASHINGTON -- A Democratic congressional leader on defense called on Thursday for an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, increasing pressure for a change in Bush administration policy just days after the Senate asked for a plan to end the war."The U.S. cannot accomplish anything further in Iraq militarily. It is time to bring them home," said Rep. John Murtha of Pennsylvania, the senior Democrat on the House of Representatives subcommittee that oversees...

By Charles Aldinger WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Tuesday joined President George W. Bush's counter-offensive against Iraq war critics, retracing what Rumsfeld called the "actual history" of U.S. involvement in Iraq. Bush has twice in recent days ripped into Democrats who have accused the Republican president and other top administration officials, including Rumsfeld and Vice President Dick Cheney, of manipulating intelligence on weapons of mass...

By Vicki Allen WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Showing mounting discontent among Republicans over progress in the Iraq war, the U.S. Senate resolved on Tuesday that Iraqis should start taking the lead in their own security next year to allow a phased withdrawal of U.S. troops. But the Republican-led Senate rejected Democrats' demand for Republican President George W. Bush to submit a plan and an estimated timetable to withdraw U.S. forces, a step Bush has vehemently opposed. The Senate's vote...

By Charles Aldinger WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Tuesday joined President George W. Bush's counter-offensive against Iraq war critics, retracing what Rumsfeld called the "actual history" of U.S. involvement in Iraq. Bush has twice in recent days ripped into Democrats who have accused the Republican president and other top administration officials, including Rumsfeld and Vice President Dick Cheney, of manipulating intelligence on weapons of mass...

By Charles Aldinger WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Chalabi, once embraced and then shunned by the Bush administration, held talks with Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Monday but the Pentagon did not allow television cameras to record the event. He also held a private meeting at the White House with Vice President Dick Cheney after his 45 minutes of talks with Rumsfeld, but Cheney's office would not provide details. Chalabi's trip to Washington has angered...

By Paul TaylorBRUSSELS (Reuters) - Why does the West so often win wars and then go on to lose the peace?A former NATO commander and veteran of military operations in Northern Ireland, Iraq and the Balkans tackles that question in a challenging book that advocates a complete rethink of the way Western nations organize and use their armed forces.In "The Utility of Force," retired Gen. Sir Rupert Smith, one of Britain's most decorated soldiers, says Western armies are still set up to...