Iraq's Cabinet decided Tuesday to ask the United States for changes to the draft agreement that would keep American troops here three more years, as key Shiite lawmakers warned the deal stands little chance of approval as it stands. ...more

October 22, 2008

The situation in Afghanistan is the worst it has been since the U.S.-led invasion of 2001 and the country is in danger of a "downward spiral" into violence and chaos, according to an intelligence report draft. ...more

October 10, 2008

The U.S. military's main combat hospital in Iraq is increasingly treating Iraqis. As the numbers of wounded American troops have fallen, the hospital is now saving the lives of a remarkable 93 percent of Iraqis who come with devastating injuries. ...more

October 2, 2008

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Monday that the government is ready to compromise to reach a security accord with the United States, because Iraq still needs American troops despite the drop in violence. ...more

September 30, 2008

U.S. troops hunting for a suspected al-Qaida in Iraq militant raided a house Friday and killed seven people, including three women, drawing an angry protest from Iraqi officials that all the victims were civilians. ...more

September 20, 2008

Concern over upcoming elections and widening tensions among Iraq's religious and ethnic groups appear to be the reasons for the U.S. military's recommendation to put the brakes on withdrawing more American troops from Iraq despite improvements in security. ...more

September 6, 2008

Iraqi and U.S. negotiators have completed a draft security agreement that would see American troops leave Iraqi cities as soon as June 30, Iraqi and American officials told The Associated Press on Wednesday. ...more

August 21, 2008

President Bush sent American troops to Georgia on Wednesday to oversee a "vigorous and ongoing" humanitarian mission, in a direct challenge to Russia's display of military dominance over the region. ...more

August 14, 2008

Voters will decide Aug. 26 which of three Democratic candidates will challenge freshman Gus Bilirakis for the 9th Congressional District, a Republican-held seat since its creation in the early years of the Reagan administration. ...more

July 31, 2008

I am frankly mystified at the endless palaver concerning the surge, which, according to my recollections, was an infusion of some 25,000 additional troops into Iraq last year. Such a decision was not a change in tactics or certainly not a new strategy, yet it is currently a subject of political debate as if such a decision was a stroke of military genius as to warrant a complete rewrite of the curriculum at West Point. ...more

July 28, 2008