Word: ashraf
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...obscure group known for launching attacks on Iran in the 1980s and '90s, when Iraq and Iran were bitter, warring enemies. But since the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the MEK has been stripped of its weapons, confined to its base at Camp Ashraf about 80 miles north of Baghdad and guarded by U.S. troops. The group is hardly an immediate threat to Iraqi security, or even particularly relevant to the challenges Iraq faces under the new U.S.-Iraq security pact...
...when the U.S. military formally transferred control of Camp Ashraf back to the Iraqi government on Jan. 1, the MEK's fate suddenly became an issue. The group is a source of contention for Iran and the U.S., Iraq's two biggest allies, who are increasingly vying for influence as Baghdad's post-Saddam Hussein Shi'ite government asserts its independence. All three countries label the MEK a terrorist organization. Iran wants the group handed over for prosecution. But the U.S. has pledged to ensure the group's rights under international...
...question now isn't just what to do with the 3,500 Iranians at Camp Ashraf - it's also who decides their future. Past U.S. ties to the group suggest that the Geneva Convention isn't the only reason Washington might not want to throw the MEK to the wolves just yet. But how deeply is Washington invested? The answer may lie in how Baghdad chooses to deal with the group...
...Saba Ashraf of law firm Troutman Sanders wrote in a notice to clients that the IRS's relaxation of overseas borrowing rules "continues the trend of taxpayer friendly guidance in light of the credit difficulties and economic downturn." Federal Assistance, Tax-Free...
There has been progress, of course. More Afghan children are in school today than at any other time in the nation's history, and the private sector is growing. But such good news is easily undermined by the increasing insecurity and Afghanistan's rampant corruption. Ashraf Ghani, a former Finance Minister, says his nation has reached a fork in the road. "It is not inevitable that we go to that downward spiral," he says. "If we take the right road, we can get to the destination of a stable and eventually prosperous Afghanistan...