Serbia to return Iraqi fighter planes after 20 years

October 2nd, 2009 Jolie urges world not to forget Iraqi refugeesDAMASCUS, Syria — Angelina Jolie met with Iraqi refugees in Syria on Friday and urged the world not to forget the plight of those among them who cannot return home because of the trauma they suffered and the country's instability. Jolie visited Syria in her role as a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations' refugee agency, UNHCR, and was accompanied by her partner, Brad Pitt, the agency said.

September 14th, 2009 Serbia to cut 20 pct of state jobs under IMF planBELGRADE, Serbia — Serbia will have to lay off about one-fifth of its government employees — 14,000 people — to meet conditions set by the International Monetary Fund to receive more financial aid, the country's finance minister said Monday. Finance Minister Diana Dragutinovic said Serbia aims to cut spending before the government resumes its talks with the IMF on Oct.

September 7th, 2009 PARIS - Brazil is planning to buy 36 Rafale fighter jets from France, officials said Monday. French President Nicolas Sarkozy is currently in Brazil to negotiate the aircraft deal.

September 4th, 2009 Officials: Serbia may offer Iraq air force planesBELGRADE, Serbia — Serbia may offer Iraq some planes from its aging air force and train pilots to partly make up for fighter jets sent here for maintenance during the Saddam Hussein era that have now been deemed useless, officials said Friday. U.S. officials are concerned about Iraq's ability a set up and train a new force by the time most American troops withdraw at the end of 2011.

September 4th, 2009 Blasts kill 7 at Serbia munitions factoryBELGRADE, Serbia — A series of explosions at an underground ammunition factory in central Serbia killed at least seven people and injured 15, police said Friday. They said the explosions occurred around 10 p.m.

September 3rd, 2009 Blasts kill 6 at Serbia munitions factoryBELGRADE, Serbia — A series of explosions late Thursday at an ammunition factory in central Serbia killed at least six people and injured 10, police said. They said the explosions occurred around 10 p.m.

September 3rd, 2009 Report: blasts kill 6 at Serbia munitions factoryBELGRADE, Serbia — State TV is reporting that six people have been killed and at least 10 injured in a series of explosions at an ammunition factory in central Serbia. The report said the explosions occurred around 10 p.m.

August 31st, 2009 Iraqi planes found in Serbia, but in piecesBELGRADE, Serbia — Jet fighters sent by Saddam Hussein for maintenance 20 years ago have been found in Serbia, but they will be of little use in rebuilding Iraq's Air Force because most are in pieces, Serbian officials said Monday. The Iraqi Defense ministry says it discovered during a search of its files that the 19 planes — Soviet-built MiG-21s and MiG-23s — were sent in 1989 to what was then Yugoslavia, of which Serbia was a part.

July 28th, 2009 US general: Iran working to influence Iraq voteBAGHDAD — The top U.S. commander in Iraq said Tuesday that Iran is still training and equipping Iraqi insurgents but is shifting its focus to influence the upcoming Iraqi elections and exerting "soft power" over its majority-Shiite neighbor.

July 28th, 2009 BAGHDAD - US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates arrived in Iraq Tuesday on an unannounced visit to examine the future role of the US military in Iraq. According to Iraqi government sources, Gates met with Iraqi and US security and military commanders at the US military base of Talil, near the southern Iraqi city of al-Nasseriya in the afternoon.

June 11th, 2009 Serb lawyer quits murder trial of 3 AmericansBELGRADE, Serbia — A legal representative of the families of three Albanian-American brothers who were murdered execution-style in Serbia in 1999 says she is quitting the trial of the alleged killers. Serbia's leading human rights activist Natasa Kandic said Thursday she has decided to stop participating in the trial of two Serb policemen because Serb authorities are allegedly protecting the real killers and those who ordered the slaying.

June 4th, 2009 Mammoth skeleton unearthed in SerbiaBELGRADE, Serbia — A well-preserved skeleton of a mammoth that is believed to be about 1 million years old has been unearthed in eastern Serbia, archaeologists said Thursday. The discovery was made during excavation two days ago at an open-pit coal mine near Kostolac power plant, said Miomir Korac, from Serbia's Archaeology Institute.

May 8th, 2009 Serbia urges citizens' help with guerrilla's graveBELGRADE, Serbia — Serbian authorities are urging citizens to come forward with any information about the whereabouts of the grave of a World War II guerrilla leader who rescued American airmen shot down by the Nazis. Dragoljub Draza Mihailovic's burial site has remained a mystery since his execution as a traitor by the postwar Communist government in 1946.

May 6th, 2009 NEW YORK - Pictures of an ill-conceived photo-operation, designed to capture one of the president's planes near national landmarks like the Statue of Liberty, will be kept under wraps. As part of a photo-op carried out by the US Defense Department, a 747 and supersonic jet fighter might have buzzed the Manhattan skyline, and panicked New Yorkers on April 27, fearful of a terrorist attack reminiscent of 9/11.

April 27th, 2009 Serbia seeks grave of slain WWII guerrilla leaderBELGRADE, Serbia — Serbia's government has formed a special commission to try to locate the grave of a World War II guerrilla leader executed as a traitor by the Communists, officials said Monday. The location of Dragoljub Draza Mihailovic's grave has been unknown since postwar Communist authorities executed him in 1946 for collaboration with the Nazi occupiers.