Islamic State of Iraq news stories on Newser

Iraq Church Attack Leaves Dozens Dead

Matt Cantor — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 08:45:51 CDT

Dozens are dead and more than 50 wounded after militants took nearly 100 hostage in a Catholic church in Baghdad yesterday, prompting Iraqi anti-terrorist forces to storm the building. Officials say most of the injuries and deaths occurred after the kidnappers set off two suicide vests, the New York Times...

Iraq Takes Over Prison —and 4 Inmates Escape

John Johnson — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 11:39:57 CDT

Lock the cells, please: US and Iraq made a big deal of it earlier this month when the American military turned over control of the last US-run prison in the country. (See summary here .) But within a matter of days, four prisoners—three of them high-ranking members of the...

Al-Qaeda Claims Baghdad Bombing

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 06:09:41 CDT

Al-Qaeda's umbrella group in Iraq claimed responsibility for this weekend's twin suicide bombings in the heart of Baghdad that killed at least 155 people, including 24 children trapped in a bus leaving a day care center. The group, known as the Islamic State of Iraq, said in a statement posted...

Sunnis Launch Ramadan Murder Drive

Peter Fearon — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 04:11:42 CDT

Sunni insurgents have launched an assassination campaign aimed at Iraqi police and officials of the Interior Ministry to mark the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, reports the New York Times . Eight police officers, including a police chief, have been killed and 30 injured. A provincial governor survived a suicide bombing...

Al-Qaeda Puts Price on Head of Cartoonist

Wesley Oliver — Sun, 16 Sep 2007 17:01:57 CDT

An al-Qaeda affiliate is offering a reward to slaughter a Swedish cartoonist who drew an image offensive to Muslims. In an online statement, Islamic State in Iraq offered $100,000 for Lars Vilks' murder and $50,000 for that of the newspaper editor who published the cartoon. The reward escalated...

Iraqi al-Qaeda Group to Track Down 'Traitors'

Kate Schwartz — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 11:31:42 CDT

Thursday's assassination of a Sunni tribal leader was the first in what an al-Qaeda front group warns will be the fate of all who cooperate with the US, reports the AP. The Islamic State of Iraq announced on Islamist websites that "special security committees" will track down "traitors" who support...

Bin Laden's Envoy in Iraq Captured

Greg Atwan — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 13:57:29 CDT

US Forces have captured a leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq they say was an envoy to central al-Qaeda leaders Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri. Khaled al-Mashhadani was captured on July 4th in Mosul, and is believed to be the most senior Iraqi in the organization which has been at...

Al-Qaeda Claims It Captured Soldiers

Peter Fearon — Mon, 14 May 2007 06:40:08 CDT

An al-Qaeda umbrella group claims it kidnapped the three US soldiers missing since Saturday. Thousands of troops continue to sweep the area south of Baghdad dubbed the Triangle of Death for their comrades, who disappeared in an ambush that killed four other solders. The so-called Islamic State of Iraq offered...

Militants Burn Houses in Mixed Areas

Caroline Miller — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 09:31:29 CDT

Sunni extremists burned houses in a mixed city 60 miles from Baghdad over the weekend, a new tactic in the campaign to drive out citizens who don't support a sectarian agenda. Attackers burned as many as 100 homes, both Sunni and Shiite, in an apparent effort to destroy mixed neighborhoods...