Baghdad

BAGHDAD -- After nearly nine years, 4,500 American dead, 32,000 wounded and more than $800 billion, U.S. officials formally shut down the war in Iraq -- a conflict that U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said was worth the price in blood and money, as it set Iraq on a path to democracy.

BAGHDAD -- The suicide bomber who killed 29 people at Baghdad's largest Sunni mosque disguised himself as a beggar and attended prayers there for nearly a week to avoid raising suspicions, a senior religious figure said Monday.

The attack hit Sunnis praying at a special service Sunday night during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan and appeared calculated to try to re-ignite widespread violence in Iraq just months before all U.S. troops are required to withdraw from the country.

BAGHDAD -- Iraqi officials say the death toll from a car bomb near a Shiite funeral has risen to 48.

The blast Thursday sparked skirmishes between Iraqi troops and protesters who were infuriated by the security lapse. Officials said at least 121 people were wounded in the explosion.

BAGHDAD -- Vice President Joe Biden emphasized to Iraqi leaders Thursday that the U.S. wants nothing more than for Iraq to be a free and democratic country in a daylong visit that officials said would focus on the departure of American troops from the country.

Biden's trip marks the first visit by a top U.S. official since Iraq approved a new Cabinet last month, breaking a political deadlock and jump-starting its stalled government after March's inconclusive elections. Three explosions in the capital killing two people, however, demonstrated the lingering security challenges facing the country's young democracy.

BAGHDAD -- In the sacred Shiite city of Najaf, where women hide themselves behind dark robes and head scarves, 15-year-old Ban wears the wrong kind of black.

She likes dark, ripped gloves, silver butterfly shirts and white dice on a chain. She paints her nails black and brushes on matching eye shadow.

Ban is an emo, belonging to a subculture that may have gone mainstream in the rest of the world, but sure hasn't here. She pronounces it "emu." Either way, it means she's a goth, with a fondness for sparkle.

BAGHDAD -- Bombs killed 17 people across Iraq's capital on Saturday, including Iranian pilgrims near a revered shrine and shoppers at a Shiite neighborhood market, authorities said.

The attacks -- several roadside bombs and cars packed with explosives -- wounded more than 100 people. Most of the casualties were likely Shiite Muslims, a frequent target of Sunni insurgents who have long sought to provoke civil war in Iraq.