What happened
U.S. forces and Iraq's new government made a two-pronged push to break the back of the country's insurgency this week, with soldiers executing a string of raids and government leaders proposing a broad new amnesty offer. Jalal Talabani, the newly named president, said the amnesty program would be part of a peace initiative that could also include the release of militiamen loyal to firebrand Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. 'œWith a comprehensive policy,' Talabani said, 'œwe can eradicate terror in the country within months.'
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Why India's medical schools are running low on bodiesUnder The Radar A shortage of cadavers to train on is forcing institutions to go digital
-
Magazine solutions - November 22, 2024Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - November 22, 2024
-
Magazine printables - November 22, 2024Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - November 22, 2024
-
Putin’s threat to fracture Ukrainefeature Fears that Russia was building a pretext for an invasion of eastern Ukraine grew, as pro-Kremlin protesters occupied government buildings in three cities.
-
Curbing NSA surveillance
feature The White House said it will propose a broad overhaul of the National Security Agency’s domestic surveillance program.
-
Downsizing the military
feature A new budget plan for the Pentagon would save hundreds of billions of dollars by taking the military off its post-9/11 war footing.
-
Putin ratchets up pressure on Ukraine
feature Russian President Vladimir Putin put 150,000 troops at the Ukraine border on high alert and cut off $15 billion in financial aid.
-
Ukraine on the brink of civil war
feature Ukraine’s capital was engulfed in flames and violence when hundreds of riot police launched an assault on an anti-government protest camp.
-
Ukraine at the breaking point
feature An alliance of opposition groups vowed protests would continue until President Viktor Yanukovych is removed from power.
-
Dim prospects for Syrian talks
feature A long-awaited Syrian peace conference in Montreux, Switzerland, quickly degenerated into a cross fire of bitter accusations.
-
The fight over jobless benefits
feature A bill to restore federal benefits for the long-term unemployed advanced when six Republican senators voted with Democrats.