KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (Reuters) – A suicide bomber blew himself up near a convoy of a U.S. security firm in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar on Thursday, killing two people and wounding six, the provincial governor’s spokesman said.

MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) – Falah Mohammed peered over his shoulder as he spoke of how militants threatened to kill him and his family unless he quit his government job.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Sunni Arab neighborhood patrols have been vital to cutting violence in Iraq. But how the Shi’ite-led government handles their future could foster sectarian reconciliation or start a new round of bloodshed.