BAGHDAD — Iraqi special forces units raided the homes of two Sunni politicians north of Baghdad on Friday, according to security officials, heightening fears among Sunni leaders that Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is targeting them along sectarian lines. Read full article > >

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Iraqi forces raid homes of Sunni politicians

Australia lifts all restrictions on the roles that women can carry out in its armed forces, including serving in special forces and front-line combat units.

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Australia lifts female combat ban

TRIPOLI, Libya — Libyan rebels fought isolated pockets of resistance early Friday as special forces hunted for fugitive leader Moammar Gaddafi after clearing one of his loyalists’ last major strongholds in the capital. The streets of Tripoli were largely deserted except for rebel fighters manning checkpoints Friday, the last day in the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. Rebels seemed to have control of most of the Abu Salim neighborhood they cleared of Gaddafi loyalists the previous day, although they said the area was still not completely safe, and occasional gunshots still rang out. Read full article > >

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Libyan rebels fight pockets of resistance, continue hunt for Gaddafi

KABUL — Taliban insurgents blew up a truck outside the British cultural center in Kabul on Friday, then stormed the compound and fought a gun battle for more than eight hours with Afghan security forces trying to dislodge them. The violence, which came on the anniversary of Afghanistan’s 1919 independence from Britain, left at least eight people dead, in addition to the attackers, officials said. A Special Forces soldier from New Zealand who was shot in the chest was among those killed, along with five policemen and two Afghan guards, and 22 people were injured, including several Afghan policemen, the officials said. Read full article > >

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Insurgents storm British compound in Kabul

A new public-enemy number one? Saif al-Adel, a former Egyptian special forces officer, has become the interim leader of al Qaeda, according to CNN. The information comes from Noman Benotman, who fought with al Qaeda-affiliated groups for years before…

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Al Qaeda Gets a New Leader

An Egyptian who was once a special forces officer has been appointed “caretaker” leader of al Qaeda in the wake of Osama bin Laden’s death, according to a source.

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Egyptian named acting al Qaeda leader

Erik Prince is back in business. The billionaire founder of mercenary group Blackwater Worldwide is helping set up a special forces battalion in the United Arab Emirates, where he resettled recently as his company faced mounting legal challenges in the…

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Blackwater Founder Training UAE Battalion

The US special forces raid on Osama Bin Laden’s Pakistan hideout was “not an assassination”, the US attorney general tells the BBC.

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US defends shooting of Bin Laden

The Pakistani town of Abbottabad seems to have been the perfect place to “ hide in plain sight .” Not only did officers at the Pakistani military academy there apparently miss spotting Osama bin Laden so did a team of U.S. Special Forces trainers that, according to Pakistani officials, was based there from September to December 2008. The “Where’s Waldo?” aspect of the hunt for bin Laden — who turns out to have been living since 2005 just a few hours’ drive north of Islamabad — has worsened the mistrust between America and Pakistan. Pakistani anger over the unilateral U.S. attack is indicated by the fact that someone just “outed” the CIA station chief in Islamabad for the second time in a year. Read full article > >

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Did Pakistan know bin Laden was ‘hiding in plain sight’?

President Barack Obama rules out releasing photos of Osama Bin Laden taken after he was shot dead by US special forces in Pakistan two days ago.

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No release of Bin Laden photos

Osama Bin Laden’s killing was lawful, says the US attorney general, after it emerged he had been unarmed when special forces killed him in Pakistan.

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Bin Laden killing lawful, says US

Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari denies that the killing of Osama Bin Laden by special forces in his country is proof it is failing to combat terrorism.

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Pakistan defends Bin Laden role

Iraqi special forces are taking the lead on missions.

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U.S. Special Forces prepare to leave Iraq

Iraqi special forces are taking the lead on missions.

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U.S. Special Forces prepare to leave Iraq

President Karzai’s cousin has become the latest in a string of high-profile civilian casualties in Afghanistan. Yaar Mohammad Khan, 65, was shot and killed by U.S. Special Forces during a night raid in southern Afghanistan targeting Khan’s son. It’s…

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Karzai’s Cousin Killed in Botched Raid