IN RECENT weeks the Obama administration has radiated optimism about the possibility of a deal with Iran on its nuclear program. The latest round of talks in Baghdad this week should lower those expectations. Tehran’s negotiators rejected a package offered by the United States and its five partners covering proposed confidence-building measures, and it demanded recognition of an Iranian “right” to enrich uranium, a concession U.S. officials say they are unprepared to make. The only substantive agreement was on holding another meeting next month in Moscow. Read full article > >

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Editorial Board: Iran’s hard bargain

BAGHDAD — A second day of talks between Iran and world powers began Thursday amid fading hopes that these latest negotiations would help ease tensions over Tehran’s disputed nuclear program. Iran rejected a new package of proposals put forward by the six nations, including the United States, on Wednesday, but U.S. officials said the fact that the talks were being extended into Thursday suggested there was still hope the effort could be salvaged. Read full article > >

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Iran nuclear talks continue on second day

Talks in Baghdad on Iran’s controversial nuclear programme go into a second unscheduled day after diplomats fail to reach agreement.

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Extra day for Iran nuclear talks

Officials from six world powers are due to hold talks with Iranian representatives in Baghdad on Wednesday about Tehran's controversial nuclear program.

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6 nations talk to Iran about its nukes

A group of six world powers begin fresh talks with Iran in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, about Tehran’s controversial nuclear programme.

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Powers begin Iran nuclear talks

BAGHDAD-World powers began a fresh round of talks with Iran on Wednesday amid hopes of progress toward a deal on Tehran’s disputed nuclear program that could help lift the threat of war hanging over the Middle East. Read full article > >

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Nuclear talks begin in Baghdad, a day after U.N. watchdog says deal with Iran is near

As American negotiators prepare for nuclear talks next week in Baghdad, they say recent statements from Iran and pressure from sanctions have raised the chances of compromise.

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Officials See Promising Signs for Iran Nuclear Talks

“Iraqi Immigrants in California Town Fear a Hate Crime in a Woman’s Killing,” read a recent New York Times headline. The article reported that the murdered woman’s family had previously found a note with the words “This is my country. Go back to yours, terrorist,” taped to the door of their Orange County house. Although an ongoing police investigation has unearthed family tensions which may have led to the murder of Shaima Alawadi, the shame and the fear of violence directed at Arab and Muslim Americans is nevertheless very real. I know because I, too, am an Iraqi-American, born in Baghdad and raised here. First, some background. After graduating high school in Baghdad, my father received his medical degree from La Sorbonne in Paris. Returning to Baghdad, he founded a private hospital with an Iraqi partner also educated in Paris. My father was Jewish; his partner Shiite; their nurses Catholic nuns in the then multi-cultural, multi-ethnic Iraqi capital. Following Israel’s creation, anti-Semitism surged throughout the Arab world. My mother fled with me to Europe. Unable to get permission to legally emigrate, my father smuggled himself to Iran in a fishing boat. From there, he flew to Europe, rejoining us, and bringing us all to America. He got recertified here, and would treat thousands of patients in an office off Fifth Avenue.

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Reclaiming My Iraqi Identity

BAGHDAD — On the face of it, Iraq’s first springtime since American troops withdrew in December is turning into the most peaceful and promising the country has witnessed in a decade, offering what U.S. and some Iraqi officials say amounts to a vindication of President Obama’s Iraq policy. Read full article > >

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U.S. policy on Iraq questioned as influence wanes, Maliki consolidates power

BAGHDAD — The Iraqi government is debating proposed laws that would impose strict controls on freedom of speech and association, prompting fears that the authorities are playing a growing and increasingly oppressive role in citizens’ lives. Read full article > >

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In Iraq, concern over shrinking rights

BAGHDAD — After years of strained relations, a series of diplomatic gestures between Iraq and Saudi Arabia is easing tensions between two of the Middle East’s most influential nations at a critical time for the region. Read full article > >

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Iraq and Saudi Arabia show signs of improved relations after years of strain

An Army interpreter who had been seized by gunmen in Baghdad in 2006 was the last American service member who had been unaccounted for in Iraq.

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American Soldier’s Remains Are Recovered From Iraq

On July 12, 2007, during a long, hot mission, American soldiers searched houses in a ruined maze of a neighborhood in east Baghdad. The largely routine effort came to a violent conclusion: An Apache helicopter circling overhead spotted several men carrying weapons. The chopper stalked the targets, then opened fire. Among the 11 killed were a Reuters photographer and his driver. Among the wounded were two young children. Read full article > >

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‘Incident in New Baghdad’: What happened in Iraq?

So, the inevitable has occurred: After the withdrawal of U.S. troops, the American diplomatic presence in Baghdad may be cut drastically, making the new $750 million embassy compound a monstrous white elephant. Read full article > >

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Baghdad embassy for sale: An In the Loop contest

The United States in Iraq, population 16,000, is a country within a country. It has a $6 billion budget, its own airline and three hospitals, and imports virtually all of its food. Its central fortress, otherwise known as the Baghdad embassy compound, is nearly as large as Vatican City. Read full article > >

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U.S. evaluating size of Baghdad embassy, officials say