BASRA, Iraq  – Iraq’s elections this week will be a crucial test of whether the oil-rich but dilapidated city of Basra is ready for the international investment it desperately needs, British officials said. Once overrun by gangs and militias vying for control of Iraq’s second biggest city, Basra is now …

LONDON – The Taliban told U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday that his plan to close Guantanamo Bay prison camp was a “positive step” but peace was only possible if he withdraws U.S. forces from Afghanistan and Iraq. The Taliban, toppled in the 2001 U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan, also told …

NAJAF, Iraq  – After years of often bloody struggle, one party has risen to dominate much of Iraq’s Shi’ite Muslim south, but the party of the prime minister poses a stiff challenge in upcoming elections due to his rising popularity. Slick, well-organized and well-funded, the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (ISCI) …