Script from the WBAP-TV/NBC station in Fort Worth, Texas, relating a news story of the Palestinian guerillas who have left Paris aboard a Syrian airliner taking 6 male hostages with them.

Script from the WBAP-TV/NBC station in Fort Worth, Texas, relating a news story of five Palestinian terrorists who are holding 15 hostages in the Saudi Arabian Embassy in Paris have accepted an offer from the president of Syria to put a plane at their disposal.

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Report which discusses issues related to the North Atlantic Trade Organization (NATO) and the European Union (EU) including the level of involvement of the entities in using political and military actions to defend against terrorism and proliferation, the types of military forces necessary, the role of the EU in crisis management, the appropriateness of decision-making procedures to respond to emerging threats, and the role of other international institutions.

This report discusses issues with the “oil-for-food” program (OFFP), which was the centerpiece of a long-standing U.N. Security Council effort to alleviate human suffering in Iraq while maintaining key elements of the 1991 Gulf war-related sanctions regime. The program terminated following the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime, the assumption of sovereignty by an interim Iraqi government on June 28, 2004, and the lifting of Saddam-era U.N. sanctions. However, since the fall of the regime, there have been new allegations of mismanagement and abuse of the program, including allegations that Saddam Hussein’s regime manipulated the program to influence U.N. officials, contractors, and politicians and businessmen in numerous countries.

The Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA or “the authority”) was established approximately one month after United States and coalition forces took control of Baghdad in Iraq on April 9, 2003.1 The authority’s mission was “to restore conditions of security and stability, to create conditions in which the Iraqi people can freely determine their own political future, (including by advancing efforts to restore and establish national and local institutions for representative governance) and facilitating economic recovery, sustainable reconstruction and development. This report discusses two views on how the authority was established, reviews selected characteristics of the authority, identifies statutory reporting requirements concerning the authority and the reconstruction of Iraq, and explores several policy issues.

This report presents casualty data compiled by the Department of Defense (DOD), as tallied from the agency’s press releases.

This report provides an annotated list of U.N. agencies that are involved in Iraq, key U.S. government agencies, and a sample list of major international and U.S.- based aid organizations that are providing humanitarian assistance to Iraq. Internet links to the U.N. agencies and humanitarian aid organizations are also provided.

This report outlines Iran's activities and influence in Iraq. Iran is materially assisting major Shiite Muslim political factions in Iraq, most of which have longstanding ideological, political, and religious ties to Tehran, and their armed militias.

This report identifies online sources for maps of Iraq, including government, library, and organizational websites.

The following table provides access to names and contact information for CRS experts on policy concerns relating to Iraq. Policy areas identified include: U.S. policies on Iraq; governance in Iraq and U.S. military issues; refugees, internally displaced persons, and humanitarian assistance; prospects for Iraq's economy; resource and funding requirements; and the international context--the regional political and security environment.

This report provides information about the current perspectives and policies of Iraq's neighbors following the fall of the Saddam Hussein regime in 2003; analyzes potential regional responses to renewed violence and longer-term stabilization efforts; discusses shared concerns and U.S. long-term regional interests; and reviews U.S. policy options for responding to various contingencies.

This report discusses the state of Iraqi politics, governance, and human rights, including the worsening relations between local Sunni and Shiite populations.

This report discusses the armed offensive militants of the Islamic State (IS, also known as ISIL or ISIS) in northern and western Iraq and northeastern Syria that has raised significant concerns for the United States.

This report discusses political, military, and humanitarian developments in Iraq in 2017 and 2018 such as the defeat of the Islamic State, displaced persons returning home, and upcoming elections.