U.S. Department of State

Iran's wrestling team abruptly decides to skip L.A. competition

2013-05-17 20:23:00

On the eve of an international wrestling meet at the Sports Arena, American officials remain at a loss to explain why the Iranian team — making its first visit to the U.S. since 2003 — has unexpectedly withdrawn and flown home. Los Angeles...

Nigeria launches airstrikes against Islamist militants

2013-05-17 10:24:00

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa -- Security forces in Nigeria have launched airstrikes against encampments of the Islamist militia Boko Haram as part of a major military operation in the country's northeast, military officials said Friday. The airstrikes hit...

U.S. decries Russia weapons sale to Syria

2013-05-17 17:21:00

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration on Friday condemned Russia's delivery of advanced antiship missiles to Syria and its buildup of warships in the eastern Mediterranean, arguing that the Kremlin's escalating support for its longtime ally in...

McManus: The second-term scandal plague

2013-05-18 06:52:00

What is it about presidents' second terms that makes them seem so scandal-ridden? Simple: The iron law of longevity. All governments make mistakes, and all governments try to hide those mistakes. But the longer an administration is in office, the more...

The GOP pivots on the IRS scandal

2013-05-17 14:16:00

The scandal surrounding the Internal Revenue Service's handling of applications for tax-exempt status by "tea party" groups and other right-leaning organizations took a sharp turn at the House Ways and Means Committee on Friday. In addition to decrying...

The Benghazi talking points

2013-05-16 00:00:00

The furor over the Benghazi talking points continues. Republicans still see them as the main event in a campaign to embarrass President Obama. The president, for his part, calls them a "sideshow." Finally, on Wednesday, the White House released more...

Partisan political bubbles distort Benghazi facts

2013-05-14 05:00:00

How you feel about Benghazi very likely has everything to do with your political leanings. If you think the Obama administration is covering up a scandal bigger than Watergate, you are almost certainly a Republican. If you think Republicans in Congress...

U.S. diplomat accused of recruiting for CIA in Russia

2013-05-14 16:25:00

MOSCOW — Russian authorities detained an American diplomat accused of attempting to recruit a Russian intelligence officer into the CIA, the Federal Security Service said Tuesday. Ryan Christopher Fogle, the third secretary of the American Embassy...

Mistaken Benghazi claim came from CIA, emails show

2013-05-15 19:09:00

WASHINGTON — Career CIA officers were responsible for administration claims that the armed attack in Benghazi, Libya, that left four Americans dead last fall grew out of a protest of an anti-Islamic video, an incorrect assertion that became a...

Bringing drones out of the shadows

2013-05-13 00:00:00

The use of unmanned aircraft to kill suspected terrorists, a practice that has dramatically escalated during the Obama administration, is receiving fresh and welcome scrutiny in Congress and elsewhere even as the number of drone strikes seems to be on the...

Senate bill aims to toughen Iran sanctions

2013-05-08 16:51:00

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan group of senators introduced legislation Wednesday that would sharply toughen U.S. economic sanctions on Iran despite administration calls for Congress to delay penalties that could disrupt diplomacy aimed at resolving...

Envoy describes night of Benghazi attack

2013-05-08 16:27:00

WASHINGTON — Minutes after Greg Hicks learned that the perimeter of the U.S. mission in Benghazi had been breached by men with guns, he punched a cellphone number to reach Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, his immediate boss, who was at the scene....

Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) is leading the GOP investigation of the Sept. 11, 2012, assaults that killed U.S. Ambassador J.

2013-05-08 00:00:00

Anti-communist sentiments among U.S. voters in South Florida help keep Cuba and its revolutionary leader Fidel Castro in Washington's political cross hairs.

2013-05-03 05:00:00

The Bureau of Consular Affairs is attending the International Gay & Lesbian Travel Assn. convention.

2013-05-01 18:08:26